James Cameron has shared insights into why his family decided to relocate to New Zealand.

The famed Titanic director, now 71, explained that this move fulfilled a promise he made to himself back in 1994. At that time, as his career and family life with his wife, Suzy Cameron, began to flourish in California, he quietly committed to the idea of living in New Zealand one day.

In a preview for the upcoming January 24 episode of the “In Depth with Graham Bensinger” podcast, James mentioned that the global COVID-19 pandemic was a catalyst. The way New Zealand managed the virus compared to the United States gave him the confidence to follow through with his long-held plan.

“I’m not there for the scenery; I’m there for the sanity,” he stated in the video released on January 21. This move comes more than a decade after he purchased a farm in New Zealand, frequently traveling back and forth over the years.

James also recounted how his wife, Suzy, was supportive from the start. “When Suzy and I were first getting serious, she said, ‘Fine, no problem.’ She was game,” he recalled, noting that their original timeline shifted as their family grew.

James and Suzy, 64, share three children: Claire, 23, Quinn, 21, and Elizabeth, 18. Their blended family also includes his daughter Josephine, 32, from his past marriage to Terminator star Linda Hamilton, while Suzy has a son named Jasper from her previous marriage to actor Sam Robards.

“That conversation had to be amended slightly, but we did say after Avatar, let’s make this happen,” he added, revealing they decided to “make the move as a family” in August 2020 while he was still working on the set of Avatar: The Way of Water. (The film was released in December 2022.)

Following Titanic‘s success, stars such as Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio continued to find success in the industry. The film, which was released in 1997, was inspired by the historical sinking of the RMS Titanic. The shipwreck was explored against the backdrop of a forbidden romance between Jack (DiCaprio) and Rose (Winslet), whose different social […]

“New Zealand had eliminated the virus completely,” James said on the show. “They actually eliminated the virus twice. The third time when it showed up in a mutated form, it broke through.”

“But fortunately, they already had a 98 percent vaccination rate. This is why I love New Zealand. People there are, for the most part, sane as opposed to the United States where you had a 62 percent vaccination rate, and that’s going down — going the wrong direction,” he added.

He continued, “Where would you rather live?” he continued. A place that actually believes in science and is sane and where people can work together cohesively to a common goal, or a place where everybody’s at each other’s throats, extremely polarized, turning its back on science and basically would be in utter disarray if another pandemic appears.”

James Cameron has a bone to pick with the Oscars snubbing sci-fi movies like Avatar and Dune. “I don’t think about the Academy Awards that much,” Cameron, 71, said in an interview with The Globe and Mail published on Friday, December 19. “Intentionally, I don’t think about that at this point. I don’t try to […]

Suzy and James first crossed paths on the set of Titanic, in which she portrayed Lizzy Calvert, the granddaughter of Kate Winslet’s character, Rose. Production began in 1995 with his deep-sea expeditions to capture footage of the famous wreck. Filming for the box office sensation took place from July 1996 to March 1997. The couple later married in 2000.

James’ full interview airs in syndication across the U.S. this weekend, also covering his personal life in addition to “his passion for sustainability,” choice to adopt “a plant-based diet” and efforts to “reduce his carbon footprint in an effort to help protect the environment.”