'Avatar' Sequels May Use Underwater Motion-Capture Technology

James Cameron and Sebastian from "The Little Mermaid": both fans of going under the sea. Cameron famously set a record by diving 6.8 miles down into the Mariana Trench's Challenger Deep last year; Sebastian, meanwhile, famously sang "Under the Sea" in "The Little Mermaid."

It's Cameron's deep sea adventures, however, that are important at the moment: As first reported by Deadline.com, "Avatar" producer Jon Landau told attendees at the 2013 NAB Technology Summit on Cinema that "Avatar 2" and "Avatar 3" will utilize underwater motion-capture technology. “We want to take advantage of the technologies brilliant people are putting out to make the next two movies even more emotionally engaging and visually tantalizing, and to really wrap up the story arc of our two main characters," Landau said. Neytiri and Jake Sully (played by Zoe Saldana and Sam Worthington) were the two leads of "Avatar," in case some fans have forgotten.

This isn't the first time an ocean-set "Avatar" has been broached. Rumors of Cameron wanting to shoot underwater go back a few years, and the director discussed the possibility with Worthington.

"He's trying to get me to scuba-dive," Worthington told MTV News last year. "I've never been, but he got me the gear and the tanks, so I've got to give it a go. I've got to get my lessons. I'm a bit nervous."

Worthington might not have a lot more time to overcome any of his fears. Cameron is close to getting "Avatar 2" in front of cameras.

"I'm deep into it and I'm living in Pandora right now," Cameron told Play Goes Strong in March of this year. "There is that start up torque where you feel it's coming to you. Then you build up momentum. That's when it gets fun. The characters talk and it's writing itself. I'm almost there right now. It's building fast."

For more on Landau's comments, head over to Deadline.com.

[via Deadline.com]