James Cameron helmed some of the most remarkable films of all time, all of which were followed by different generations of viewers and fans. From Titanic to The Terminator, and now the top-grosser Avatar franchise, the director holds a certain kind of command in the industry.
Well-renowned filmmakers have been subjected to lots of urban legends and hearsay, and Cameron is no exception at all. For years, the director has been asked a lot of times how he managed to brainstorm and pitch his ideas, and one popular myth is the director’s pitch for Aliens.
James Cameron Reveals The Truth Behind Aliens Movie Pitch Rumor
Over the years, Cameron proved that he is one of the most sought-after directors of our time. The rumor about his pitch for Ridley Scott’s sci-fi horror sequel went around for years and became the whispers of the town. The tale says that Cameron faced before a panel of executives from 20th Century Fox, wrote the word ‘Aliens’ and drew two vertical lines across the letter ‘s’ so as to suggest the dollar symbol.
In his interview with CinemaBlend, the director finally unveiled the truth:
“Yeah, it’s true. It just popped into my mind in the moment. It was actually on the back of a script, or some kind of presentation document. It might’ve been the treatment. I can’t remember. I was sitting with the three producers, and we were in the office of the then-head of 20th Century Fox. And I said, ‘Guys, I got an idea for the title. And it goes like this.’ And I wrote, ‘Alien’ in large block letters. And I put an S on the end.”
All it took was that symbolic title and a few explanations from Cameron before the executives gave him the go signal. It reflected how much they trusted his ability and confidence in the concept.
“I showed it to them. I said, ‘I want to call it Aliens, because we’re not dealing with one. Now we’re dealing with an army, and that’s the big distinction. And it’s very simple and very graphic.’ And I said, ‘But here’s what it’s going to translate to.’ And then I drew the two lines through it to make it a dollar sign. And that was my pitch. And apparently, it worked! Because they went with the title. They never questioned it.”
Aliens emerged as one of the most successful sequels ever created. With a budget of $18.5M, the film grossed more than $180M at the box office. It was a spectacular sight to behold for fans of science fiction movies.
Cameron Produces The Best Movies Of All Time
Fast forward to the present year, James Cameron is now basking in the success of the Avatar franchise. The sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water, is predicted to hit the $1B mark worldwide. The movie experienced a bit of a slow momentum during the holiday weekend due to the unfortunate weather in some countries but is expected to get back on track this week.
From the emotional Titanic love story to the chilling Aliens invasion, James Cameron never falls short on brilliant movie concepts. He has proved to be one of the most creative and profitable directors of all time.
Avatar: The Way of Water is currently showing in theaters worldwide.
Source: CinemaBlend
