--- description: Find out why James Cameron was selected for the list title: TIME100 Climate 2023: James Cameron image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc2c98f081b89d01a/698a42430116827837983a28/CAMERON.jpg?branch=production&width=1920&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Nov 16, 2023 # James Cameron Filmmaker by Marcius Extavour  Richard Shotwell—Invision/AP James Cameron is one of the most celebrated and commercially successful filmmakers of all time. Most recently, his _Avatar_ films featuring prominent themes about the dangers of irresponsible resource extraction and environmental damage have smashed international viewership and revenue records. “He wants to focus on how to save a planet, not destroy one,” [described](https://time.com/6255536/james-cameron-interview-avatar-the-way-of-water/ "undefined") a TIME interview with Cameron about the series. But his environmentalism goes beyond the screen: _Avatar 2_ was powered entirely by solar electricity and served exclusively plant-based food on set. This has set a new standard for what is possible in sustainable film and television production in Hollywood, and in the broader industry. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/time100-climate/6333608/james-cameron/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/time100-climate/6333608/james-cameron/"},"headline":"James Cameron","datePublished":"2023-11-16T12:35:25.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-03T02:27:50.732Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/time100-climate/6333608/james-cameron/","keywords":["climate change","climate","Business","sponsorshipblock","Climate100Titans23","TIME100 Climate"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc2c98f081b89d01a/698a42430116827837983a28/CAMERON.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"creator":"TIME Staff","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc2c98f081b89d01a/698a42430116827837983a28/CAMERON.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/time100-climate/6333608/james-cameron/","name":"James Cameron"}}]}] ```