Jon Landau poses for a portrait at the 95th Academy Awards Nominees Luncheon in February 2023 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. Landau, an Oscar-winning producer who worked closely with director James Cameron on “Titanic” and the “Avatar” series, has died.
Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP
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Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP
LOS ANGELES — Jon Landau, the Oscar-winning producer who worked closely with director James Cameron on three of the biggest blockbusters of all time, “Titanic” and two “Avatar” films, has died. He was 63.
Landau’s family announced his death Saturday. No cause of death was given.
Landau’s partnership with Cameron earned him three Academy Award nominations and a Best Picture Oscar for “Titanic” in 1997. Together, they created some of the biggest blockbusters in cinema history, including “Avatar” and its sequel, “Avatar: Water.”
“Jon Landau believed in the dream of cinema. He believed that cinema was the ultimate human art form, and to make movies, you had to be human yourself,” Cameron said in a lengthy statement published by The Hollywood Reporter. “He will be remembered as much for his great generosity of spirit as for the movies themselves.”
“I worked with Jon Landau for 31 years and never once did I see him depressed,” Cameron said. “He ran his business with a balance of humor and fierce will, and a genuine joy for his work.”
Landau’s career began in the 1980s as a production manager, and he gradually rose through the ranks, becoming a co-producer on “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids” and “Dick Tracy.”
He served as a producer on “Titanic,” Cameron’s epic and expensive saga about the infamous 1912 maritime disaster. The gamble paid off: “Titanic” became the first film to top $1 billion in worldwide box office revenue and won 11 Oscars, including best picture.
“I can’t act, I can’t compose, I can’t do visual effects, so I guess that’s why I produce,” Landau said while accepting the award with Cameron.
Their partnership continued, and Landau became a top executive at Cameron’s subsidiary Lightstorm Entertainment. In 2009, the duo saw Avatar, a science fiction epic filmed and released in theaters using revolutionary 3D technology, surpass Titanic at the box office. It remains the highest-grossing film of all time.
Its sequel, “Avatar: The Way of Water,” is third on the list.
“Your wisdom and support have shaped so many of us in ways we will always be grateful for,” Zoe Saldaña, one of the stars of the “Avatar” franchise, said in a moving tribute on Instagram. “Your legacy will continue to inspire and guide us on our journey.”
Landau played a key role in the Avatar franchise, which has seen numerous delays since the release of The Way of Water. Landau defended the progress of the sequel and Cameron’s ambitious plans to film multiple sequels at once to keep the franchise going.
“A lot of things have changed, but a lot of things have stayed the same,” Landau told The Associated Press in 2022, months before the sequel’s release. “One of the things that hasn’t changed is: Why do people turn to entertainment today? Just like they did when the first Avatar came out, they do it to escape, to escape the world that we live in.”
“Jon was a visionary whose extraordinary talent and passion brought some of the most unforgettable stories to life on the silver screen. His remarkable contributions to the film industry have left an indelible mark and he will be deeply missed. He was an iconic and successful producer, but also an even better person and a true force of nature who inspired everyone around him,” said Alan Bergman, co-chairman of Disney Entertainment, in a statement.
Landau was named executive vice president of feature films at 20th Century Fox at age 29, where he oversaw major hits including “Home Alone” and its sequel, as well as “Mrs. Doubtfire” and “True Lies,” where he began working closely with Cameron.
Landau also played a major role in the 2019 manga adaptation of Alita: Battle Angel for the big screen. Cameron supported the project, but his commitments to Avatar prevented him from directing, so Landau worked with director Robert Rodriguez to complete the film.
Born in New York City on July 23, 1960, Landau is the son of film producers Ely and Edie Landau. The family moved to Los Angeles in the 1970s, and Landau graduated from the University of Southern California’s film school.
Ely Landau died in 1993. Edie Landau, the Oscar-nominated producer of films including “Long Day’s Journey Into Night,” “Hopscotch” and “The Deadly Game,” died in 2022.
Jon Landau is survived by his wife of nearly 40 years, Julie; their sons, Jamie and Jodie; as well as two sisters and a brother.
