Disney started its CineEurope presentation in Barcelona today with 12 minutes of footage from July’s Marvel fourquel Thor: Love and Thunder. Throughout the show, Disney showed trailers and looks at its other upcoming movies, including four never-before-seen scenes from James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water.
Before the Thor footage, Disney’s Head of Global Theatrical Distribution Tony Chambers talked about the importance of immersive storytelling and the studio’s “robust, diverse slate.” This was followed by about 60 minutes of footage that was introduced by EMEA Head of Theatrical Distribution Nick Rush and EMEA Head of Studio Marketing Lee Jury.
There were prerecorded messages from people like Marvel boss Kevin Feige, who said, “It feels like we’re just getting started, even after 14 years.” As he introduced the Love And Thunder scenes, Thor star Chris Hemsworth said he wished he was in Barcelona, where the sangria “always tastes better.”
Harrison Ford sent a video for Lucasfilm’s Indiana Jones 5, saying that it had been 13 years since the last movie and that it was “time to put on the fedora and crack the whip.”
We also saw parts of Haunted Mansion, Pixar’s Elemental and Strange World, and the ensemble Amsterdam, which was directed by David O. Russell for New Regency.
Sam Mendes sent a video about Empire Of Light by Searchlight. The director of 1917 said that after making that movie, he wrote this one during lockdown. He said it was a “extremely personal story” about music, movies, and finding love in strange places.
Rebecca Kearey, the international head of Searchlight, showed a trailer for See How They Run, which stars Sam Rockwell and Saoirse Ronan, and a teaser for The Banshees of Inisherin, which stars Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, directed by Martin McDonagh. Searchlight also showed the first scene of Chevalier, which is about the son of an African slave and a French plantation owner who grows up to be a famous composer in France.
The next movie by Thor director Taika Waititi, Next Goal Wins, got an eight-minute sneak peek. The movie is about the American Samoa soccer team. In 2001, they lost to Australia 31-0, which was the worst loss in World Cup history. Michael Fassbender takes over as their new coach.
Disney’s show ended with a visit from Avatar producer Jon Landau, who flew from New Zealand to Barcelona to talk about the next movie in the series. He said that Avatar: The Way of Water was in the final stages of post-production and that it was important to be in Barcelona “to show our support for the exhibition community.”
Landau said that the strength of James Cameron’s scripts is that they have universal themes. “There is nothing more relatable than family,” he said before showing a message from Cameron.
Cameron from New Zealand said that the people working on Avatar were “pushing the limits even further… Every shot is made for the biggest screen and best resolution that can be achieved… I think this is what people want.” He also said, “Our business is not going away.”
