Arguably two of the biggest sequels teetering on the edge of entering production, in a comprehensive report detailing upcoming start dates, My Entertainment World has seemingly revealed that Wolverine 3 and James Cameron’s long-delayed Avatar 2 will leap in front of the cameras come April.
Recently pushed out of its tentative December 2017 release window – likely to make room for Disney’s Star Wars: Episode VIII – Cameron’s sci-fi follow-up has struggled to nail down a concrete production timeline up until now. However, My Entertainment World is now claiming that the director’s trip to Pandora will begin filming in New Zealand in only a few months’ time. No word yet on whether Cameron will remain committed to filming three sequels back-to-back, though we’ll keep you updated as Avatar 2 inches closer to firing up production.
In terms of Hugh Jackman’s final appearance as James Howlett, the outlet has slated Wolverine 3 to get the ball rolling a little later on April 25, where it will shoot in a variety of locations across New Orleans and New Mexico. That leaves James Mangold and Co. facing a quick turnaround if the threequel is to make its original release date of March 3, 2017, so don’t be too surprised if Fox opts to push this one.
Further in the report, there was also mention of Rupert Sanders’ Ghost in the Shell entering production later this month all across New Zealand, Hong Kong, Macau and Shanghai, hot on the heels of its changeover from Disney to Paramount. Principal photography for erotic sequel Fifty Shades Darker is also primed to get underway in February, while Michael Bay’s Transformers 5 isn’t due to lens until May.
Perhaps in reaction to news that Noomi Rapace won’t be returning – thereby confirming that casting was still underway – Ridley Scott’s Alien: Covenant won’t begin filming until April, despite reports claiming that the sci-fi sequel was poised to enter production this month.
It isn’t the only feature guilty of a delay, however, particularly when you consider just how many times Avatar 2 has been pushed as James Cameron got a hold of his universe-spanning vision. But surely the director’s budding trilogy will begin to take shape later this year, right?
