James Cameron Remembers Friend and Filmmaking Partner Jon Landau

2 months ago 21

Prolific shaper Jon Landau, who passed distant past Friday, was known for his longtime concern with filmmaker James Cameron—and with his loss, Hollywood is present without 1 of the champion minds successful cinema. Landau was astatine enactment connected the upcoming Avatar sequels with Cameron, having teamed with the manager connected a immense bequest of films including the archetypal 2 installments of Pandora’s sci-fi universe, arsenic good arsenic True Lies and Titanic. Some of his different credits see Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, Solaris, and Alita: Battle Angel.

Cameron released a connection successful remembrance to his person done the Hollywood Reporter, which work successful part: “A large shaper and a large quality being has near us. Jon Landau believed successful the imagination of cinema. He believed that movie is the eventual quality creation form, and to marque films you person to archetypal beryllium quality yourself. He volition beryllium remembered arsenic overmuch for his immense generosity of tone arsenic for the movies themselves.”

Cameron went connected to picture however captious Landau was to their work, arsenic good arsenic the full amusement industry. “I worked with Jon Landau for 31 years and I ne'er saw him downcast once,” helium continued. “He led with a equilibrium of wit and fierce will, and existent joyousness successful the work. When I met him, helium was the workplace ‘suit’ assigned to oversee True Lies in ’93. In the midst of the logistical nightmare of that accumulation we came to respect and bask each other. A enslaved forged successful fire. I lured him distant from Fox to articulation my accumulation company, Lightstorm and unneurotic we past tackled Titanic, a accumulation arsenic ambitious and seemingly ill-fated arsenic the vessel itself. Jon bore the brunt of the workplace unit and gave his each to supply the clip and resources for maine to marque the movie I saw successful my head. From that we became brothers successful arms. We believed we could lick immoderate accumulation problem. The adjacent upland we climbed was Avatar, a accumulation that much resembled the Manhattan Project… making up caller physics arsenic we went along. Mastering a marque caller methodology to archer stories. Again Jon gave his all, and ne'er mislaid religion that we were doing thing bonzer and that we would someway prevail. In the process we not lone made a film, we forged a family. Jon was the bosom of the Avatar family, with his humor, generosity and tremendous capableness to marque radical consciousness valued and ‘seen.’ He gave everyone a consciousness of intent and belonging. And this continued done the making of the sequels. It is intolerable to convey however overmuch our choky knit radical volition miss this man, this unit of nature… the halfway of gravity of our small bubble universe. Jon created a community, a family, connected Avatar and astatine Lightstorm, but not astatine the disbursal of his ain family, who were ever his highest priority.”

“The Avatar household grieves the nonaccomplishment of our person and leader, Jon Landau. His zany humor, idiosyncratic magnetism, large generosity of tone and fierce volition person held the halfway of our Avatar beingness for astir 2 decades. His bequest is not conscionable the films helium produced, but the… pic.twitter.com/fsR77qHoO2

— Avatar (@officialavatar) July 7, 2024

Cameron closed retired his connection with a farewell dedication: “Jon was my close manus and I was his. In caller years we became a trapeze act… total interdependence, full trust, full synchronization. We became not lone the closest of moving partners, but the closest of friends. My past connection to him was not lone that I loved him but that I missed our regular dialogue. We would speech 20 times a day, usually successful his bureau which helium placed strategically betwixt excavation and the set. Solving each occupation that came along. Jon had the spot to archer maine erstwhile I was wrong, and I learned implicit the years to spot that helium was right. Jon loved his work, and loved the radical astir him, the astonishing squad helium had built. Every time was joyful battle, against entropy—the chaos that threatens to unravel each quality endeavor. The halfway ever held, nether Jon’s watchful eye. We fought done the pandemic unneurotic to present Avatar: The Way of Water. Together, we thought we could lick anything. But you can’t lick the fragility of beingness itself. I americium grateful for each year, each day, each infinitesimal we had together. I americium grateful for the content helium had successful maine and what his concern allowed america to execute together. A portion of myself has been torn away. But the astonishing squad helium assembled and led inactive remains, and we volition dedicate ourselves to fulfilling Jon’s legacy. Not conscionable the films yet to come, but the emotion and transportation that binds the Avatar and Lightstorm household together.”

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