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James Cameron Dunks On Marvel And DC Characters For Acting Like 'College' Kids

Home / News / James Cameron Dunks On Marvel And DC Characters For Acting Like 'College' Kids

By Favour Adegoke on October 27, 2022 at 6:00 AM PDT
Updated on December 20, 2022 at 8:31 AM PST

There's no love lost between James Cameron and the Marvel and DC universe. The "Avatar" director is currently gearing up to release "Avatar: The Way of Water," the sequel to the 2009 film.

Besides the original actors like Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldaña, Kate Winslet will also make an appearance in the film as Ronal, the head of Metkayina, a lesser-known Na'vi clan.

The director recently spoke on films and mentioned DC universe and Marvel characters as people who behave like college students. Cameron claimed they had no depth and the way they were created wasn't the right way to make movies.

Read on to learn more.

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James Cameron Says Marvel, DC Characters Act Like They Are In College

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In a new interview with The New York TimesCameron shed light on how cinema has evolved over the years and called out Marvel and DC characters, claiming they had no depth. The filmmaker is the brain behind famous films like "Titanic" and "Avatar." He also directs the upcoming sequel to the sci-fi/action, "Avatar: The Way of Water."

"When I look at these big, spectacular films — I'm looking at you, Marvel and DC — it doesn't matter how old the characters are, they all act like they're in college," the director said. "They have relationships, but they really don't. They never hang up their spurs because of their kids."

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According to Cameron, the superhero characters had no experience with intense feelings. "The things that really ground us and give us power, love, and a purpose?" he continued. "Those characters don't experience it, and I think that's not the way to make movies."

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Martin Scorsese Once Called Out Superhero Flicks

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Three years earlier, "The Wolf of Wall Street" director Martin Scorsese made a comment similar to Cameron's. The legendary filmmaker spoke to Empire Magazine and revealed that he tried watching superhero movies; however, they didn't click with him.

Scorsese said he did not consider them cinema and described them as "theme parks." "I tried, you know? But that's not cinema," the director said. "Honestly, the closest I can think of them, as well made as they are, with actors doing the best they can under the circumstances, is theme parks."

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He continued, "It isn't the cinema of human beings trying to convey emotional, psychological experiences to another human being." James Gunn, the former director of "Guardian of the Galaxy," responded to Scorsese and revealed that he was "saddened" over the "Shutter Island" director's words.

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James Cameron's 'Avatar: The Way Of Water'

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Cameron's next movie project is the sequel to his 2009 work, "Avatar." The long-awaited sequel, "Avatar: The Way of Water, " will reportedly be in theaters mid-December this year. The first film followed Worthington's character, Jake, who was a former marine.

In the film, Jake takes part in the Na'vi culture and falls in love with Saldaña's character, Neytiri. The new movie will take place around 15 years from the events of the 2009 film and feature an older Jake and Neytiri with their three children as well as their adopted child.

"In the first movie, Sam's character leaps off his flying creature and essentially changes the course of history as a result of this crazy, almost suicidal leap of faith," Cameron explained.

"Zoe's character leaps off a limb and assumes there's going to be some nice big leaves down there that can cushion her fall," the director continued. "But when you're a parent, you don't think that way. So for me, as a parent of five kids, I'm saying, 'What happens when those characters mature and realize that they have a responsibility outside their own survival?'"

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'Avatar: The Way Of Water' Was Filmed Underwater

According to Cameron, several scenes of "Avatar: The Way of Water" was filmed underwater rather than making use of CGI technology like "Aquaman." The director was asked why he went to such lengths, and he revealed it was because "it looks good."

"Oh, I don't know, maybe that it looks good?" Cameron said to The Times. "Come on! You want it to look like the people are underwater, so they need to be underwater. It's not some gigantic leap — if you were making a western, you'd be out learning how to ride a horse."

The actors had to train with the help of breath specialists in order for them to hold their breath underwater for longer. Cameron explained, "I knew Sam was a surfer, but Sigourney and Zoe and the others weren't particularly ocean-oriented folks. So I was very specific about what would be required, and we got the world's best breath-hold specialists to talk them through it."

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