The Buzz: James Cameron, The Avengers, and Joss Whedon

The Buzz is a feature in which we round up the Top 3 most-buzzed-about movie/TV stories of the week (in chronological order). Why go through pages of blogs just to find out what everyone is talking about? We’ve got it all right here.

1) James Cameron Will Now Only Make ‘Avatar’ Sequels

Earlier this week, James Cameron told the New York Times that he isn’t planning to do any more movies outside of his Avatar franchise. The Canadian filmmaker is probably best known for writing and directing Titanic, as well as The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgement Day. The avid deep sea lover will continue to make documentaries, but he has “basically completely disbanded [his] production company’s development arm.” The buzz is that people are disappointed we won’t see more original material from Cameron, given his iconic filmography that includes Aliens, The Abyss, and more.

2) ‘The Avengers’ Breaks Records in Opening Weekend

By now you’ve probably heard that Marvel’s The Avengers break all kinds of records in their US opening weekend, including the amount of times the phrase “Avengers Smash” was used. With $207 million, The Avengers broke the previous weekend record held by the final Harry Potter film by almost $40 million. It’s obviously the first movie to break the $200 million weekend barrier, and it also has the largest Saturday total ever. While the record surprised most, there were definitely hints that it was possible, including an A+ CinemaScore, strong reviews, and positive worldwide buzz from the film’s international opening a week before. The question on everyone’s mind now is whether The Dark Knight Rises can take back the crown for the Batman franchise. [Box Office Mojo]

3) Joss Whedon Thanks Fans

It’s hard not to like Joss Whedon, the writer and director of the previously mentioned megahit The Avengers. The guy is a nerd to the core that loves his fans, and showed that this week in a letter to his fans on Whedonesque. You can read the entire thing there, but it’s pretty funny, and essentially thanks the fans for sticking with him and supporting the film. He also talks about the film’s obviously rival, The Dark Knight Rises, but only has kind words: “Our successes, whoever has the mostest, are a boon to each other. We’re in the business of proving that superhero movies aren’t just eye-candy.” Again, read the whole thing to see more and learn a bit about Whedon’s upcoming projects.