In case you missed it, James Cameron recently told Vanity Fair the following: 

"I worked on Piranha 2 for a few days and got fired off of it; I don’t put it on my official filmography. So there’s no sort of fond connection for me whatsoever. In fact, I would go even farther and say that... I tend almost never to throw other films under the bus, but that is exactly an example of what we should not be doing in 3-D. Because it just cheapens the medium and reminds you of the bad 3-D horror films from the 70s and 80s, like Friday the 13th 3-D. When movies got to the bottom of the barrel of their creativity and at the last gasp of their financial lifespan, they did a 3-D version to get the last few drops of blood out of the turnip. And that’s not what’s happening now with 3-D. It is a renaissance—right now the biggest and the best films are being made in 3-D."

Not the nicest thing in the world to say, but I agree with Cameron that diluting a product cheapens it worth. "Piranha 3D," "Clash of the Titans," "The Last Airbender" and others were shot in standard 2-D and converted to 3-D, and none have looked nearly as good as "Avatar" did. So Cameron has some very good points here.

However, "Piranha 3D" producer Mark Canton disagrees. He wrote the following lengthy letter to Cameron earlier today.

"As a producer in the entertainment industry, Jim Cameron's comments on VanityFair.com are very disappointing to me and the team that made Piranha 3D.  Mr. Cameron, who singles himself out to be a visionary of movie-making, seems to have a small vision regarding any motion pictures that are not his own.  It is amazing that in the movie-making process - which is certainly a team sport - that Cameron consistently celebrates himself out as though he is a team of one.  His comments are ridiculous, self-serving and insulting to those of us who are not caught up in serving his ego and his rhetoric.
 
Jim, are you kidding or what? First of all, let’s start by you accepting the fact that you were the original director of PIRANHA 2 and you were fired.  Shame on you for thinking that genre movies and the real maestros like Roger Corman and his collaborators are any less auteur or impactful in the history of cinema than you. Martin Scorcese made Boxcar Bertha at the beginning of his career.  And Francis Ford Coppola made Dimentia 13 back in 1963.  And those are just a few examples of the  talented and successful filmmakers whose roots are in genre films.  Who are you to impugn any genre film or its creators?

Having been deeply involved, as either an executive or as a producer, on Tim Burton’s original BATMAN and the first MEN IN BLACK, as well as 300, and now IMMORTALS, one of the things that has been consistent about all  of the filmmakers involved in these landscape-changing global films is that, in each and every case, all of the directors were humbled by their predecessors, their colleagues and by their awareness of the great history of film that came before them.  The enjoyment and the immersion of an audience in a movie theatre, as they had and will have with the above-mentioned films, and as audiences are experiencing with PIRNAHA 3D now, comes from the originality and the vision of the filmmaker, and not just from the creation of the technology.  You as much as anyone certainly knows that there are many pieces to the puzzle. Going to the movies still remains, arguably, amongst the best communal experiences that human beings can share.
   
My sense is that Mr. Cameron has never seen PIRANHA 3D...certainly not in a movie theatre with a real audience.  Jim, we invite you to take that opportunity and experience the movie in a theatre full of fans - fans for whom this movie was always intended to entertain.  

That's Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis who are about to kiss in Darren Aronofsky's "Black Swan," due Dec. 1. The plot: Portman and Kunis play rival ballet dancers competing for the lead in a new production of "Swan Lake." As you may imagine, things get...interesting between them. For more images from the movie, go here.

New images from "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" (Nov. 19), Angelina Jolie/Johnny Depp's "The Tourist" (Dec. 10) and more here. Extensive pics from "The Social Network" (Oct. 1) are available here. 

Warner Brothers has hired Jonathan Liebesman to direct "Clash of the Titans 2." 

Who? Liebesman is currently finishing post-production on "Battle: Los Angeles," in which a Marine Corps platoon fends off an alien invasion in L.A. Liebesman also directed "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning" in 2006.

Really, this is the best Warner could do? The dailies on "Battle" must be darn impressive for Warner to hand Liebesman the keys to the "Clash" franchise, which has made nearly $500 million worldwide ($161 million domestic).

Original "Clash" director Louis Leterrier chose not to return for the sequel. No release date has been set for "Clash 2," nor is there even a production start date. But it will be shot in 3-D, rather than be converted into 3-D as it was last time. 

Who would have thought telling your girlfriend she "deserves to be raped by a pack of ni#$ers" would hurt your career? It doesn't seem to have hurt Mel Gibson's.

According to a "60 Minutes"/Vanity Fair poll, 76% of Americans said they would not be affected by the Oscar winner's crazed rants at his ex-girlfriend and baby mama. According to THR, the breakdown was 80% men and 72% women, meaning nearly three-quarters of women polled -- who may or may not have heard the tapes -- said Gibson's alleged actions would have no affect on them paying to see one of his movies.

Who's the happiest person to hear this? Maybe Gibson, but I'd say Jodie Foster: Her directorial effort "The Beaver," in which Gibson stars as a guy who wears a puppet of a beaver on his arm and treats it as if it's a living creature, is still scheduled for release later this year.

I maintain Gibson needs to stay behind the camera for a while -- he's a better director ("Braveheart," "The Passion of the Christ," "Apocalypto") than actor anyway. But would you pay to see a Mel Gibson movie?

Estimates have "The Last Exorcism" and "Takers" making roughly $21 million at the box office over the weekend, though which made more is still too close to call. This much we do know: "The Expendables" continues to hold strong with an estimated $9.5 million weekend ($82 million cumulative), as does "Eat Pray Love" with a $7 million weekend ($60.7 million cumulative). Rounding out the top five is "The Other Guys," with an estimated $6.6 million weekend ($99.3 million cumulative).

"Piranha 3D" finished 10th with $4.3 million, bringing its total to $18.2 million. James Cameron hates on "Piranha 3D" here. Speaking of whom, the "Avatar" re-release earned only $4 million in select IMAX and 3-D theaters, finishing 12th.

Next weekend will likely be lackluster as well, with the rom-com "Going The Distance," Robert Rodriguez's "Machete" and George Clooney's "The American" opening wide. All three are tolerable, but none look to be box office hits. Late August/early September is a slow, slow time of year at the movies, in terms of both quality and attendance.

UPDATE 8/31 - 6:40 p.m.: "Takers" finished first with $20.5 million, "The Last Exorcism" second with $20.3 million. It's common for estimates to be roughly $1 million off, so no major surprises here.

News roundup:

--Rumors are swirling that Jennifer Aniston will appear topless in "Wanderlust," producer Judd Apatow's ("Funny People") latest about a married couple (Aniston and Paul Rudd) that ends up living in a hippie commune. But there's more: Her character also sleeps around at the commune, has a threesome with two women, and smokes weed. Credit to the 41 year-old Aniston for breaking away from romantic comedies and doing something different. It may not work, but I commend her for trying.

--Alex Winter (Bill), Keanu Reeves (Ted) and writer Ed Solomon are kicking around ideas for a third "Bill and Ted" movie, which presumably would pick up with the two as adults. The first film, "Excellent Adventure," was fun, but "Bogus Journey" serves as reminder of why it's taken so long for the third film to be discussed. More here from AICN.

--Sylvester Stallone tweeted to his followers recently: "Had dinner with Bruce Willis last night. I want him in EXPENDABLES II as a super villain. What do you think?"

I tell you what I think, Sly. I think you left a gaping hole in terms of the story in "The Expendables" with Willis' character, and it does seem to set up nicely to bring him back as a villain. But Willis hasn't played many villains, so it may not work. Also, if you do "Expendables 2" you MUST also cast Carl Weathers, Steven Segal, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Chuck Norris. Anything less would be uncivilized.