A year ago, director James Cameron announced that he is in the Avatar business. And, to be honest, I don’t blame him working on what he has invented, especially after being a huge success at the box office. Avatar (2009) grossed over $2 billion worldwide. – Based on the reports, after the success of Avatar, Cameron also announced that he was planning to shoot Avatar 2 and 3 back to back and release the sequels a year apart.

Today, news broke by Fox that director Cameron has enlisted the help of four screenwriters so they can collaborate with him on the screenplays for not 2, but 3 more Avatar films. The first sequel, as Fox put it, is scheduled to hit the screens in 2016. Avatar 3 in 2017 and Avatar 4 in 2018, respectively. Screenwriters are Josh Friedman (War of the Worlds), Amanda Silver & Rick Jaffa (Rise of the Planet of Apes) and Shane Salerno (Savages). Production is set to begin next year.

Cameron, regarding the recent news, stated:

“Building upon the world we created with Avatar has been a rare and incredibly rewarding experience. In writing the new films, I’ve come to realize that Avatar’s world, story and characters have become even richer than I anticipated, and it became apparent that two films would not be enough to capture everything I wanted to put on screen. And to help me continue to expand this universe, I’m pleased to bring aboard Amanda, Rick, Shane and Josh – all writers I’ve long admired -­ to join me in completing the films screenplays.”

It seems like Cameron was telling the truth that he is in Avatar business. It’s certainly a rich world that I, for one, would love to visit again. Avatar didn’t only have its stunning action sequences and great music, but it’s just, even today, a beautiful looking motion picture.

Let us know what you think. Are you guys excited to see three more Avatar films?