Avatar Expected to Sink ‘Titanic’, Impact on the Future of 3D

Let me start by apologizing for such an obvious and cliché title, but I couldn’t resist. Avatar is expected to pass the Titanic and become the highest grossing film of all time, or at least that’s the general consensus. As of January 11th, Avatar has grossed $1.3 billion, only $500 million away from becoming the number one film of all time. The film surprised many, including myself, who believed it wouldn’t even make a profit because of it’s huge $300+ million budget. But with the films massive success, Cameron has already announced a sequel to Avatar – and it may end up becoming a trilogy.

The enormous success of Avatar has been accredited to the slightly higher cost of 3D movies, however the film continues to do well in both regular format and 3D. The real question is how will this films success effect the future of 3D films (see: Twister 2 – Revenge of the 3D Cows), and for that matter, the future of 3D television.

Cameron’s film has obviously revolutionized the future of 3D, with several companies announcing that 3D HDTVs will be massed produced in 2010. And ESPN is going to run the first 3D-only network, ESPN 3D – which will only air certain live sports, starting with a FIFA match, in complete 3D. But will this catch on?

I think that question has been asked in the past about HDTV, BluRay and even the cassette (I still prefer records!), all which became largely popular in the end. But it’s also been asked for other products, too. Remember the Apple Newton and the Net PC – neither do I. The point being is it will either catch on, or it wont, and we’ll have to wait to see.

What do you think? Will you buy an expensive 3D TV to experience Avatar-quality sports and television right in your home? Or can you settle for that old, worn out, 42″ high definition picture that is sure to become obsolete? Leave a comment below!