As 'Avatar' re-releases in UAE cinemas, lead star reveals why technology didn't overshadow acting

Sam Worthington expressed his views on working with director James Cameron.

Actor Sam Worthington says he was sceptical about surrendering to director James Cameron’s vision of Avatar, which would rely heavily on the motion capture technology to create characters in the 2009 epic sci-fi film.

In Avatar, Worthington starred as Jake Sully, a paraplegic US Marine who is transported to the fictional moon of Pandora on a unique mission but becomes torn between following his orders and protecting the world he feels is his home.

Besides being a social commentary on the environment, the film also introduced cinephiles to unforgettable visuals through special effects. It also starred Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang and Michelle Rodriguez.

Cameron had described the motion capture technology as “the next level of make-up”, recalled Worthington.

“Jim (Cameron) always made us that promise that even though you’re going to be big and blue, it’s you. It’s the technology and the performance captures. He described it once to me as it’s the next level of make-up. And I was always a bit worried that the subtlety that you could act wouldn’t really translate,” the 46-year-old actor said during a virtual press conference.

But the essence of the performance came through the ‘volume’ or the motion-capture stage, he added.

“I remember seeing Sigourney blue and Zoe blue and myself blue. And, you know, it was us. Every pore, every detail. Whatever got translated from the volume of our performance through all the computers, it kept that essence. It was the truth. And that was the promise that he made me, and that’s what came out. That detail of our acting wouldn’t be overshadowed. It was just there. And that’s the essence that I saw,” said Worthington.

Set in the year 2154, Avatar explored how humans establish a colony on Pandora, populated by lush green forests, huge beasts and its native community Na’vi.

Weaver said she feels proud to be part of a movie like Avatar, which is a shining example of the progress in the field of science through cinema.

Recounting watching the movie 12 years ago on the big screen, the Hollywood veteran said she was amazed to see how Cameron effectively used 3D to narrate his story.

Avatar: The Way of Water will see Worthington, Saldana, Weaver and Lang reprise their roles. New cast members include Vin Diesel and Kate Winslet, who worked with Cameron in Titanic.