James Cameron will give the Hollywood premiere of his much-anticipated spectacle movie Avatar: The Way of Water a miss following his COVID-19 diagnosis.
The movie, which is the sequel to Cameron’s 2009 blockbuster science fiction film, is set to be showcased here on Monday evening.
The 68-year-old filmmaker said he tested positive for the novel coronavirus upon his return to Los Angeles from Tokyo. “I am in LA, just back from Tokyo, and I managed to pick up Covid on the plane, so I’m isolated and can't go to my own premiere tonight.”
“The number of people I’ve told over the years, ‘Ah, we'll catch up and I'll see you at the premiere.’ Well, I guess not. Man proposes, and God disposes,” Cameron told entertainment website Deadline.
A representative for Disney, the parent company of the movie’s distributor 20th Century Studio, said the Canadian director tested positive as part of a “routine testing cadence”.
“James Cameron has Covid, but is feeling fine... He will continue to complete his schedule virtually but will not be at the premiere,” added the spokesperson.
Cameron initially talked about the infection 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 set to attend the event in person but spoke at the opening reception virtually.
“I want to first of all, apologise to everyone who's gathered there tonight. I can't be at my own party. I was travelling 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, jeopardise other people,” he had said at the opening ceremony of the exhibit.
The multiple Oscar winner had last week attended the world premiere of Avatar: The Way of Water in London, alongside producer Jon Landau and the entire cast. Cameron also attended the South Korea premiere in Seoul on Friday and Tokyo, Japan premiere on Saturday.
But the filmmaker missed a screening of the film for Academy members on Sunday with a Q&A session afterwards, during which Landau filled in.
Avatar: The Way of Water will see Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana return as Jake Sully and Na'vi Neytiri, respectively, as the film’s story focuses on the two primary protagonists, their family and the lengths they go to keep each other safe.
Scheduled to be released in India on December 16, the movie will also mark the return of Sigourney Weaver as Dr Grace Augustine and Stephen Lang as Colonel Miles Quaritch. Guardians of the Galaxy star Vin Diesel and Kate Winslet, who had famously starred in Cameron’s 1997 hit Titanic, are the new additions to the ensemble cast.
