James Cameron Tells People 'Whining' About Long 'Avatar' Runtimes To Just 'Go Pee'

If Kate Winslet can hold her breath for a Tom Cruise-record-shattering seven minutes , certainly we can all endure whatever the “Avatar ” sequel has in store.

But director James Cameron is getting ahead of the backlash for the upcoming sequel, subtitled “The Way of Water,” which will reportedly have a three-hour runtime, by encouraging fans to “get up and go pee.” 

“I don’t want anybody whining about length when they sit and binge-watch [television] for eight hours,” he told Empire in a recent interview, seemingly overlooking that audiences cannot, in fact, pause movies in theaters. 

“I can almost write this part of the review,” he continued. ”‘The agonisingly long three-hour movie…’ It’s like, give me a fucking break. I’ve watched my kids sit and do five one-hour episodes in a row. Here’s the big social paradigm shift that has to happen: It’s OK to get up and go pee.” 

The first “Avatar” wasn’t exactly a concise piece of filmmaking, clocking in at over 160 minutes. The stunning sci-fi epic, which introduced audiences to the world of Pandora using groundbreaking visual effects, became the highest-grossing film of all time and netted nine Academy Award nominations.

But since the film hit theaters in 2009, some fans have soured on its legacy, criticizing the dialogue (unobtanium, anyone?) and generic storytelling that heavily borrowed from films like “Dances With Wolves” and “Pocahontas.” 

Cameron, however, is hearing absolutely none of it, preemptively shutting down haters before the sequel hits theaters later this year. 

“The trolls will have it that nobody gives a shit and they can’t remember the characters’ names or one damn thing that happened in the movie,” he said. “Then they see the movie again and go, ‘Oh, OK, excuse me, let me just shut the fuck up right now.’ So I’m not worried about that.”

“Avatar: The Way of Water,” was shot back-to-back with the currently untitled third film, which is scheduled for a 2024 release.

Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana are returning as Jake and Neytiri for the second film, alongside new cast members Edie Falco, Jemaine Clement and Winslet.

“Set more than a decade after the events of the first film, ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ begins to tell the story of the Sully family (Jake, Neytiri, and their kids), the trouble that follows them, the lengths they go to keep each other safe, the battles they fight to stay alive, and the tragedies they endure,” according to the film’s synopsis.

Two more planned sequels in the five-film franchise are currently in development, but Cameron has expressed doubt as to whether he’ll direct the subsequent installments.

“Avatar: The Way of Water” is set to be released Dec. 16.