James Cameron announces four Avatar novels

Highlights

• Filmmaker James Cameron has announced four novels as an extended addition to his Avatar franchise.
• The director has already added one more film to previously planned two sequels. Cameron now wants to expand the universe of Pandora through four stand-alone novels.
• Cameron has roped in noted science fiction author Steven Charles Gould to write the books, based on the universe he created in his 2009 blockbuster.
• Gould is best known for his 1992 novel "Jumper", which was turned into a motion picture in 2008. The award-winning writer's other novels include "Wildside", "Reflex", "7th Sigma" and "Impulse". He is president of the Science Fiction Writers of America.
• "Steven Gould is one of the shining lights in contemporary science fiction. I've long admired the worlds and characters he's created in his books and stories. We're very fortunate to have Steven bring his formidable talents to the Avatar universe. He is already working closely with me and the screenwriters to flesh out the expanding world of Avatar," said Cameron.
• Kathy Franklin, Lightstorm Entertainment's President of Franchise Development, said, "The novels are just one example of our commitment to our fans to extend the world of Avatar, in this instance in partnership with Twentieth Century Fox Consumer Products."
• Cameron is currently writing the screenplays for the three new Avatar pictures, along with screenwriters Josh Friedman, Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver and Shane Salerno.
• The sequels will be filmed back-to-back with production beginning next year.
• The release of the first sequel will be in December 2016, while the second will follow in December 2017 and the third a year later.