Movies

James Cameron and Fox are in discussions about re-releasing Avatar in late summer, primarily in 3-D theaters and with additional scenes left on the cutting-room floor in the rush to ready the epic for its Dec. 18 release.

The impetus for a re-release is the feeling that, even though Avatar is the highest-grossing movie of all time, producers could have raked in even more money had they been able to hold on to the digital and Imax 3-D screens that were lost when Disney opened Alice in Wonderland in 3-D on March 5.

As for how much additional footage Cameron might add to Avatar, the guessing began early Thursday when Imax CEO Richard Gelfond said that Cameron had about 40 minutes of additional material that didn't make the theatrical cut.

The maximum length a movie can be released in analog Imax theaters is 170 minutes – a number Cameron was aware of when he made his original edit – so he could add about 10 minutes to the 160-minute current run time and still be in all Imax locations.

The week before Alice arrived, Avatar was still earning millions in 4,215 North American theaters, including 179 Imax sites. Last week, it dropped to a theater count of 667, including only eight Imax 3-D locations.

Cameron and Fox also are discussing possible sequels.

The Hollywood Reporter