Disney boss Bob Iger called Avatar 3 "magnificent" and even shot down executive notes, according to James Cameron

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Disney boss Bob Iger called Avatar 3 "magnificent" and even shot down executive notes, according to James Cameron News By Molly Edwards published 27 November 2025

Bob Iger is a big fan of Avatar: Fire and Ash

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(Image credit: Disney)

James Cameron has revealed that Disney boss Bob Iger had some high praise for Avatar: Fire and Ash – and he even defended it against other feedback.

Fire and Ash is the upcoming third film in Cameron's epic sci-fi series, which will take us back to Pandora for a new adventure involving the Ash People.

"He's interesting. He doesn't weigh in until it's something for me to show," Cameron said on The Town podcast.

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When asked if Iger wanted the runtime to be 3 hours and 15 minutes, Cameron explained: "No, his comment when he watched the film for the first time, even though it was at 3 hours, 23 minutes, not including credits at that point, so it's gotten about 20 minutes shorter, or 18 minutes shorter since then. He said, 'Yeah, I know you're going to keep chopping away at it.' He said, 'But it's magnificent. It's magnificent.' He basically said, 'I love this film.' And it was interesting, because there were other heads on the Zoom that were bringing up notes. And he said, 'Yeah, you know, I didn't have a problem with that.' And he basically shot them down on their notes. And I was like, 'Okay, we're done here.'"

The Avatar: Fire and Ash runtime clocks in at 3 hours and 15 minutes according to AMC, which includes credits. That's longer than The Way of Water, which runs for 3 hours and 12 minutes.

"I haven't read Avatar 5 in seven or eight or nine years now, I have a folk memory of it. I know [Avatar 4] a bit better. But when you work on these things, you can get confused about what you know about; what happens and when it happens," Stephen Lang, who plays Quaritch in the movies, told GamesRadar+ recently.

"On the day, as we prepare to get deeply back into Avatar 4 and 5, I'll be completely up to speed – and there's not one scene that I don't look forward to playing. I always love going to work in this, in that role. You know, I love putting on that performance capture suit, and getting down to it."

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Avatar: Fire and Ash arrives this December 19. In the meantime, check out our guide to all the most exciting upcoming movies of the year for everything else that's on the way.

TOPICS James Cameron Molly EdwardsSocial Links NavigationDeputy Entertainment Editor

I'm the Deputy Entertainment Editor here at GamesRadar+, covering all things film and TV for the site's Total Film and SFX sections. I previously worked on the Disney magazines team at Immediate Media, and also wrote on the CBeebies, MEGA!, and Star Wars Galaxy titles after graduating with a BA in English.

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Logout Read more James Cameron says he's included a scene in Avatar: Fire and Ash that he was originally "saving" for "a later film": "F*ck that! He should get the bird"    Frankenstein director Guillermo del Toro has seen Avatar 3 and knows where the franchise is "going": "I think it's going to surprise a lot of people"    James Cameron doesn't like to rewatch his movies too soon after release, but he had to break his own rule with Avatar: The Way of Water: "It's a pretty good ride, I have to say!"    Avatar 3 release date, cast, story, and everything else you need to know    New Avatar 3 trailer sees the Fire Na'vi set Pandora aflame as Jake Sully and his family prepare for war    The Way of Water re-release will include three exclusive new looks at Avatar: Fire and Ash, but there's a catch    Latest in Sci-Fi Movies Star Wars: Starfighter director says the biggest inspiration for his film is Return of the Jedi: "I know the cool answer would be Empire"    Despite the success of Rebel Moon, Netflix has reportedly cancelled two upcoming Zack Snyder projects    Anakin Skywalker actor Hayden Christensen says Rogue One "captured the essence of what Star Wars is meant to be" and he loves "how they portrayed Darth Vader"    Project Hail Mary author isn't worried about spoiling a major plot reveal in the new trailer for Ryan Gosling's upcoming sci-fi movie: "This is not a Darth Vader is Luke's father kind of situation"    James Cameron slams Netflix's "fundamentally rotten" approach to theatrical releases: "The Academy Awards mean nothing if they don't mean theatrical"    Deadpool and Wolverine director Shawn Levy says his "freedom" on his Star Wars movie Starfighter is "equal to any other movie [he's] made"    Latest in News Disney boss Bob Iger called Avatar 3 "magnificent" and even shot down executive notes, according to James Cameron    Dispatch leads say the Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 team's shout-out at the Golden Joysticks "means so much," and "I've never had a game make me cry so quickly before"    A year since The Witcher 4's big reveal at The Game Awards, CD Projekt Red lead confirms "we won't be bringing any new content" to this year's awards show    Assassin's Creed Shadows director says the RPG won't get another expansion as big as Claws of Awaji, but Ubisoft is still working on "chunkier updates" for Year 2    Vecna better watch his back: Stranger Things creators say that one character's "incredible" power reveal "changes the game" for the rest of season 5    Stranger Things season 5 debuts to strong but series-low Rotten Tomatoes score, and it's over 10% lower than season 1    GAME REVIEWSMOVIE REVIEWSTV REVIEWS

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