James Cameron grieves Avatar co-producer and close friend Jon Landau’s demise: ‘Part of myself has been torn away’

In Pic: James Cameron & Jon Landau

Jon Landau has passed away at the age of 63. Now, his longtime producing partner James Cameron has paid tribute to Landau. In a conversation with Variety, he shared that he feels that "a part of myself has been torn away." James and Jon were partners for about 30 years, and they worked together on films such as Titanic and the beloved Avatar series.

The director told Variety, "The Avatar family grieves the loss of our friend and leader, Jon Landau. His zany humour, personal magnetism, great generosity of spirit, and fierce will have held the centre of our Avatar universe for almost two decades."

"His legacy is not just the films he produced, but the personal example he set - indomitable, caring, inclusive, tireless, insightful, and utterly unique. He produced great films not by wielding power but by spreading warmth and the joy of making cinema. He inspired us all to be and to bring our best every day," James said.

"I have lost a dear friend and my closest collaborator of 31 years. A part of myself has been torn away," he added.

The news of Landau's demise was confirmed by his son, Jamie Landau. He died on Friday in Los Angeles, and no cause was revealed, as per The Hollywood Reporter. Landau was a longtime producing partner of James Cameron. James and Landau began their professional relationship 30 years ago when Landau, as a film executive at 20th Century Fox, oversaw Cameron's 1994 action comedy True Lies, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger.

When Landau left Fox, Cameron asked him if he wanted to read the script for a secretive project with the code name ‘Planet Ice.' Landau joined the film, which was released in 1997 with the title Titanic and became the first movie in history to cross the $1 billion mark at the global box office. Landau received his first producer credit on Paramount's Campus Man (1987), then co-produced two Disney films, Joe Johnston's Honey I Shrunk the Kids and Warren Beatty's Dick Tracy.

Before his death, Landau was deeply involved in the making of the Avatar sequels.

(With inputs from agencies)