The momentum for Alita: Battle Angel 2 grows, as James Cameron and Robert Rodriquez swear a blood oath to make the Alita sequel. After years of developing the live-action manga adaptation for himself, James Cameron eventually passed the baton to Robert Rodriguez to make Alita so he could focus on Avatar sequels. The 2019 movie proved to be a possible success story for 20th Century as it made over $400 million worldwide. The movie was meant to launch a franchise, but Disney’s acquisition largely put plans for the future on hold, and Cameron and Rodriguez then became busy elsewhere.
Since Alita: Battle Angel‘s ending directly set up a sequel, it has long been clear that there is room for the film franchise to continue. Now, producer James Cameron and director Robert Rodriguez have sworn a blood oath to make Alita 2. The moment came as part of a virtual interview between the two filmmakers for Variety. They ended their conversation with Cameron saying they needed to make an Alita sequel, to which Rodriguez agreed, leading to Cameron joking about making the virtual blood oath. Watch the exchange below:
Why Disney Should Make Alita: Battle Angel 2
Disney has yet to announce plans to make Alita 2, but the studio would be smart to make such a decision. The press tour for James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water has now allowed him, Rodriguez, and producer Jon Landau to jointly commit to making the movie. It is not a huge surprise that the top-end creative talent is interested in making a sequel, but it also affirms that the push for an Alita sequel to happen has some influence behind it. There’s no doubt that Rosa Salazar would return as Alita for Alita 2, while the sequel could also pay off Edward Norton’s villain tease from the first movie.
Since Alita was successful enough to warrant a sequel being made, Disney could also use Alita 2 to make a new franchise. The studio is not shy about its high interest in franchises and IP as Marvel, Star Wars, Avatar, and live-action remakes fill most of Disney’s slate. An Alita: Battle Angel sequel would be a chance for Disney to diversify its portfolio and start growing a rich piece of IP. There is plenty of source material from Yukito Kishiro’s manga for future movies to pull from. Furthermore, Disney’s marketing team might find more success in getting the public excited about returning to this world.
Only time will tell if an Alita sequel does happen at Disney, but the impending box office success of Avatar: The Way of Water could play a key role too. James Cameron might soon find himself with further sway at Disney and with reinstated CEO Bob Iger to push for more of his ideas to be made. Since the Alita: Battle Angel franchise is still something Cameron is invested in, any power Avatar 2‘s success awards him could be used to push Alita 2 forward at long last.
Source: Variety