It will be four years until we say Jake Sulley once more.

Back in the days of when Avatar was the top movie at the box office, James Cameron had said his plans for the sequel were easy: do two of them, back-to-back, and have them play one year apart in December 2013, and December 2014. With 2012 now here, it would seem we’re close to Avatar 2, right? Wrong…well, at least that’s what producer for the films Jon Landau has said.

Bleeding Cool reported from a preview screening for the upcoming 3D re-release of Cameron’s Titanic, and that’s when the questions shifted to the continuation of Avatar. What Landau told the crowd was that Avatar 2 is “four years away”, meaning either 2016, or December of 2015. That’s two years ahead of the original projected release dates.

Honestly, it’s understandable. James Cameron wants to get the sequels’ scripts perfect, not to mention the extremely elaborate production that will have to commence once he rounds everyone up. With the original Avatar, it took longer than two and a half years from the start of filming to the film’s release, so pushing Avatar 2 into a year and a half seemed very unlikely.

And if the first film’s production schedule is any indication, the first sequel could begin filming early next year, or even later this year if Cameron wants to ensure a longer shooting time for both sequels back-to-back. This would open up the two and a half year window for Cameron to perfect the technology for the sequels.

Speaking of, Landay said that the CG performance capture and revolutionary 3D would be back, but promised that Avatar 2 would showcase “advanced technology” by pushing the 3D to a higher framerate. “This, he says, is the new frontier that he and Cameron are most interested in pushing.”

We’ll keep you updated with the latest information on the sequels as it, assumedly, heads into production in the near future.