When will the public at large get a look at James Cameron’s Avatar? The speculation that’s been running since last holiday season can be put to a rest. A date has officially been set and it’s… August 21st. On that Friday a trailer will hit theaters and the Internet, at less than four months until the film itself arrives. It’ll be available in all formats provided your theater plays it, from straight 2D to IMAX 3D.
James Cameron and Fox will also be delivering 15 minutes of scenes to select IMAX 3D and regular 3D locations for the public get a much longer look at the film. This will be free and only on August 21st. Details on locations and reservations are supposed to be available later. This is certain to be different than what Warner Bros did with The Dark Knight prologue where they stuck the opening bank heist in front of IMAX screenings of I Am Legend. There will be multiple scenes involved here and won’t just be the beginning of the film. I’d assume it’ll involve the same scenes just shown at Comic Con, with a couple cut out since those lasted some 25 minutes.
Personally, I think I’ll probably just watch the trailer and forget about trying to see the scenes. I don’t really want to see full clips from throughout the film before sitting down for the whole experience. The Dark Knight prologue was self-contained and the very first sequence, so I’d consider that a bit different. Of course, there’s always the possibility that I’ll be blown away by the trailer and immediately regret not getting into one of the 15 minute screenings on the 21st.
I’m looking forward to setting my eyes on this film at last, and to see how the public reacts outside of events designed to amp up excitement through exclusivity and director/cast appearances.
Avatar will be released by Fox on December 18th.
