The director of Avatar: The Way of Water, James Cameron, will not be at Monday evening’s premiere of the film in Los Angeles after he tested positive for COVID-19. A Disney spokesperson stated, “Jim has COVID but is feeling fine. He tested positive as part of a routine testing cadence. He will continue to complete his schedule virtually but will not be at the premiere.”
Cameron revealed he had COVID-19 on Sunday night, during the opening ceremony of his multimedia experience Pressure: James Cameron into the Abyss at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. He was supposed to go to the event in person but ended up speaking over Zoom instead.
Cameron stated, “I want to first of all, apologize to everyone who’s gathered there tonight. I can’t be at my own party. I was traveling around the world [for Avatar: The Way of Water premieres] … and on the flight back from Tokyo I started to feel kind of heavy. I got tested and sure enough I have COVID, so obviously I can’t be there, jeopardize other people.”
Almost 13 years after 2009’s Avatar, that won three Oscars and accumulated $2.92 billion, Cameron brought Avatar back in the sequel that stars Zoe Saldana, Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Edie Falco, and Kate Winslet. Avatar: The Way of Water is set for release on December 16th in theatres.
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