James Cameron is currently engaged in battle with… himself. Avatar: The Way of Water has rocketed up the all-time box office charts, unseating heavy hitters like Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Avengers: Infinity War, and Spider-Man: No Way Home. But right now it’s jockeying for third position with Titanic, which is once again back in theaters for a re-release.
So, with Cameron riding high, maybe it’s time to look back on another film with his fingerprints all over it: Alita: Battle Angel. The 2019 sci-fi actioner had long been a pet project of his, though he set aside plans to direct it, handed the reins to Robert Rodriguez, and acted as a producer.
Alita wasn’t a huge box office success – but was by no means a flop – and though the movie ends on a cliffhanger, we’ve had no signs of a sequel. There’s been a fervent online campaign by the film’s fans to make this happen, and in an interview with Screenrant, star Christoph Waltz was asked whether he’d sign back up.
“Thank you. Yes, if the part is what I would like to do, certainly. Definitely.”
The rest of the cast and crew are also eager to get to work on a sequel. Producer Jon Landau has encouraged fans to keep the pressure on the studio, and star Rosa Salazar has said that she’d return to the character in a heartbeat.
So, come on Disney, why not throw a little of that Avatar money toward Alita 2? It could even be a Disney Plus movie or TV show at this point. We’re hopeful that one day her story will be concluded, as the original is one of the most underrated blockbusters in recent years. Let’s make it happen.