James Cameron Expanding 'Avatar' Empire to Trilogy

James Cameron is looking toward the future, and it looks like he will be stuck on Pandora. The Oscar-winning director has signed on to make Avatar 2 and 3 as his next films!

According to Access Hollywood, James will begin working on the sequels’ scripts early next year and hopes to begin production at the end of 2011.

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“It is a rare and remarkable opportunity when a filmmaker gets to build a fantasy world, and watch it grow, with the resources and partnership of a global media company,” James told Access in a statement. “Avatar was conceived as an epic work of fantasy – a world that audiences could visit, across all media platforms, and this moment marks the launch of the next phase of that world. With two new films on the drawing boards, my company and I are embarking on an epic journey with our partners at Twentieth Century Fox. Our goal is to meet and exceed the global audience’s expectations for the richness of ‘Avatar’s’ visual world and the power of the storytelling."

So what is the plan for the future of the Avatar franchise.

“In the second and third films, which will be self contained stories that also fulfill a greater story arc, we will not back off the throttle of Avatar’s visual and emotional horsepower, and will continue to explore its themes and characters, which touched the hearts of audiences in all cultures around the world,” James continued. “I’m looking forward to returning to Pandora, a world where our imaginations can run wild.”

Tentative release dates for the films have been set for December 2014 and December 2015, respectively.

Avatar is the highest grossing film of all time, earning almost $2.8 billion worldwide at the box office.

Are you excited for the trilogy? Share your thoughts in the comments.