‘Avatar’ film editor John Refoua has died at 58

One of the geniuses behind Avatar and its sequel Avatar: The Way of Water, John Refoua, passed away on Sunday from complications related to his bile cancer. The 58-year-old Oscar-nominated film editor reached a new level in his career when he worked on the James Cameron epic, which went on the become the highest-grossing movie of all time, a position it still holds to this day.

Refoua worked with director Cameron and fellow editor Stephen E. Rivkin, with all three ending up receiving Oscar nominations for their work on the sci-fi epic whose visuals and 3D visuals broke new ground for cinematography. They were all nominated for the best achievement in film editing at the Academy Awards in 2010. Refoua returned to work on the sequel Avatar: The Way of Water which currently sits at the third highest-grossing movie of all time beneath Avatar and Marvel’s Avengers: Endgame. He also had done some work on the third installment before his passing.

Refoua’s first credit on IMDB goes back to 1992 when he worked on the television series Raven, he worked predominantly on smaller television series for a while getting his big break with 2009’s Avatar. In between the two James Cameron movies he worked on other films including The Equalizer, The Magnificent Seven, Transformers: The Last Knight, and Geostorm.

In a post on Facebook, his wife Serena Refoua, wrote,

“Dear friends, my brilliant, sweet, creative husband John Djahanshah Refoua passed away last night May 14 surrounded by family and friends who loved him. He was diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma, a rare bile duct cancer, 15 months ago. Despite the pain and complexities of this aggressive disease, he faced it with courage and grit. He continued to work and edit on James Cameron’s Avatar 3 right up to his final weeks. His life’s trajectory was quite unique and anything he touched, he made better. He loved music, movies, politics, traveling, vintage cars, science fiction, and his 4-year-old granddaughter Avery Sophia. We will miss his generosity and wisdom.”

The post also has a link to a charity which supports people suffering from cholangiocarcinoma cancers.

Our thoughts and condolences go out to friends and family of Refoua at this time.