James Cameron does not like the idea of “big” movies, claims that franchises degrade Hollywood as a whole

SUMMARY

James Cameron opened up about why he did not like Liam Neeson’s movie Battleship
The renowned director claimed that big movies like the Liam Neeson starrer degrade Hollywood as a whole
He also branded franchises as a massive issue as they just cash in money

James Cameron has worked on some of the biggest movies in Hollywood, so much so that he has created his name in the industry to be one of the biggest. Having made movies as critically appreciated as his, there is no doubt that people, celebrities and the public alike, have a massive amount of respect for him.

James Cameron

He has been very open about his opinion on other movies and genres, expressing how he feels regarding some of the biggest blockbusters that have topped the box office. However, there is one movie that does not sit well with the director at all, and it is Liam Neeson’s Battleship. In fact, he disliked it so much that Cameron felt it to be the reason Hollywood as a whole gets degraded.

James Cameron is not Fond of One Liam Neeson Movie

James Cameron has never been afraid to share his opinion when it comes to some of the biggest films in cinema. However, there was one Liam Neeson movie that desperately troubled the director. While in an interview with Spiegel Online (via Contact Music), Cameron revealed just what bothered him about the film.

Liam Neeson

“Now they want to make Battleship the game into a film! This is pure desperation because now the ‘Sequel Business’ governs Hollywood, or how we call it: the franchise.”
He thinks that the very need to turn a game, a board game into a movie; showed the stance of where Hollywood stood as a whole. He pointed out how there was an unfortunate need for studios to make franchises and sequels to anything that would potentially sell. Although Cameron had no problem in particular with the movie, he had an issue with its existence. In fact, he found it degrading to the Hollywood industry that films needed to find a big name for themselves even before they were released.

James Cameron Thinks of Big Films as Brands

While focusing on Battleship, the director explained in the interview with Spiegel Online that movies as commercially big as Neeson’s as well as those such as Harry Potter and Spider-Man, it is not just a movie that is being advertised but a brand as a whole. To him, it is this logic of how big a name can become in the industry that bothers Cameron.

James Cameron

“Everyone in Hollywood knows how important it is that the film, before it hit theatres, is already a brand. If a brand has been around, Harry Potter, for example, or Spider-Man, you are light years ahead… And there lies the problem. Because, unfortunately, [these franchises are becoming more] ridiculous. Battleship. This degrades the cinema.”
He finds it a massive issue for the Hollywood industry, one that in turn ‘degrades’ cinema as a whole. The more franchises try to cash out on their own name, the worse things get in the industry. It is a problem he sees in his own franchise’s success as well, seeing that he wanted the Avatar sequel to flop so as to stop another part from coming. However, that never happened and so the third film is already in the works.