Star Wars “pissed off” James Cameron. Convinced him to become a filmmaker

James Cameron is one of the greatest filmmakers of our time. His films, including Avatar and Titanic,  have raked in billions at the box office worldwide, but these movies may not have been possible if George Lucas hadn’t made Star Wars. Cameron has admitted a lifelong love for science fiction, but when he first watched Star Wars himself, he was a truck driver who only dreamed of one day making his own films.

Cameron was blown away by the film’s visual effects and how creatively ambitious it. Star Wars was a gamechanger for the sci-fi genre, but Cameron admitted feeling “pissed off” after watching the legendary film, because he wasn’t the one to make it. “I wanted to make that movie. That’s when I got busy,” admitted Cameron.

It also kickstarted his obsession with visual effects, something that can be seen in his own work even today. “All I was interested in was visual effects. I didn’t know who Humphrey Bogart was.” Cameron isn’t too shabby at the job himself. Avatar has dazzled millions of fans over the past decade, especially due to its stunning visuals.

James Cameron also admits that his love of Star Wars is limited to the first 6 films of the Skywalker Saga. He isn’t a huge fans of the last 3 films in the saga. When asked about The Force Awakens, he said that “I didn’t hate it. I just didn’t feel anything.” Cameron doesn’t consider himself a fan of the franchise anymore. A shame, because that probably means he’s missing out on visual feast the franchise has served on Disney+ in 3 seasons of The Mandalorian and Andor, to name a few.

Regardless of whether he’s still a fan of the films or not, it’s still amazing to know how far reaching George Lucas’s impact was on the industry, the sci-fi genre, and how inspiring his work was for many of the greatest filmmakers of our time.