Unlike sure different high-profile administrators, James Cameron is a professed fan of Marvel and DC films. But in a new interview for Avatar: The Way of Water, he weighed in on the VFX used to create Marvel villain Thanos, versus the VFX that brings his Avatar characters to life. And you received’t be shocked which he favors.
“I am not gonna dis the Marvel or the DC Universe. Love those movies, let’s just get that off the table,” he mentioned in a video interview with Comicbook.com. And whereas he might certainly benefit from the plot and characters, that’s not what he targeted on as he continued to elucidate what he most appreciates in regards to the superhero film style. “Obviously the big comic book superhero films have been driving the sheer volume of the [visual effects] industry, and the rising tide of technique raises everybody together. It gives you higher-quality artists, you’ve got more tools and plug-ins and code, you’ve got more talented people writing code and simulations and all that sort of thing. And then, as we’re putting our team together, and as [Weta FX] is constantly having to have new hires and so on, it’s coming from that pool, it improves everything together.”
However, the director who as soon as declared himself “king of the world” is assured he’s king of digital characters, too. “Weta FX is the best,” he mentioned. “When it comes to the kind of emotive, facial stuff that we’re doing—I mean, Thanos, come on. Give me a break. You saw this movie [Avatar 2], it’s not even close … I literally sometimes just sit there in review sessions just going, ‘are you seeing what I’m seeing?’ Sometimes you can understand the characters’ inner monologue with themselves and what they’re feeling before they even say a word.” It’s value noting that Weta, then referred to as Weta Digital, was actually one of the companies that worked on Thanos—however Avengers: Infinity War also came out in 2018, and presumably the tech has improved even in only a span of some years.
And, sorry nerds—Cameron mentioned he has “no interest in directing comic book movies [in the future],” although he does sound a bit of wistful talking about his never-ran with Spider-Man. Watch the total interview here; Avatar: The Way of Water is out December 16.
Want extra io9 information? Check out when to anticipate the most recent Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s subsequent for the DC Universe on film and TV, and every part you could find out about James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water.