Acclaimed filmmaker James Cameron has broken his silence on a joke made at his expense over a decade ago, delivering a sharp rebuke to comedian Amy Poehler. The 71-year-old director of the Avatar franchise took issue with a quip Poehler made while hosting the 2013 Golden Globes about his former marriage to fellow director Kathryn Bigelow.
A Joke That 'Went Too Far'
During the awards ceremony's opening monologue, co-hosted with Tina Fey, Poehler made a pointed remark linking Bigelow's film Zero Dark Thirty – which features depictions of torture – to her past relationship with Cameron. 'When it comes to torture, I trust the lady who spent three years married to James Cameron,' Poehler joked to uproarious laughter from the audience.
Now, nearly thirteen years later, Cameron has expressed his strong displeasure in an interview with The New York Times. He labelled the comment an 'ignorant dig' at an event meant to celebrate cinema. 'I’m pretty thick-skinned, and happy to be the butt of a good-natured joke, but that went too far,' stated the director, whose latest film, Avatar: Fire and Ash, has just earned a staggering $345 million in its global opening weekend.
Cameron was married to Bigelow, now 74, from 1989 to 1991. He reflected that the audience's reaction to the joke revealed their preconceived notions about him. 'The fact that people found it funny shows exactly what they think of me, even though they have no idea who I am or how I work.'
Respect and Rivalry with an Ex-Spouse
The director also spoke candidly about his enduring professional relationship with Bigelow. The ex-couple famously faced off at the 2010 Oscars, where Bigelow's The Hurt Locker beat Cameron's Avatar for Best Director. Cameron insists he was 'the first one on my feet applauding' when she won.
He praised Bigelow as a 'remarkable person' and revealed they still consult each other on projects. However, he admitted frustration that the media narrative around their Oscar competition overshadowed her achievement. 'It started to turn into a conversation that wasn’t about her film, and that bothered both of us,' he explained.
Setting the Record Straight on Matt Damon
In the same wide-ranging interview, Cameron directly addressed long-circulating claims by actor Matt Damon that he turned down the lead role in the original Avatar. Damon has repeatedly stated that rejecting the part of Jake Sully, which went to Sam Worthington, cost him a share of the profits worth an estimated $290 million.
Cameron firmly denied this version of events. 'He was never offered the part,' the director told The Hollywood Reporter. He recalled a phone conversation where Damon expressed interest but had a scheduling conflict with a Jason Bourne film. 'There was never a deal. We never talked about the character... It was simply an availability issue.'
Cameron dismissed the idea of a 10% profit share offer, stating, 'if, in his mind, that's what it would've taken for him to do Avatar, then it wouldn't have happened.' He light-heartedly added, 'Matt, it’s okay, buddy! You didn’t miss anything.' Despite the clarification, Cameron expressed respect for Damon and a desire to work with him in the future.
The original 2009 Avatar film, made on a budget of roughly $237 million, became the highest-grossing movie of all time with $2.9 billion in global box office receipts. Its latest sequel, Avatar: Fire and Ash, which cost over $400 million to produce, has launched with the second-biggest global opening of 2025. Two further sequels are planned for release in 2029 and 2031.
