Explore a ranked list of all James Cameron movies , ordered by their release dates. See how each film stands up against the rest and discover his directorial evolution. All James Cameron Movies Ranked Avatar: The Way of Water is back in theaters! For James Cameron , it all started with a severed arm and some maggots. He was art director on Roger Corman’s Piranha II: The Spawning and, for one special effect, thought to “motivate” some live maggots into movement in a prosthetic arm by shocking the prop with a live electrical cable. This helped him get promoted to director on Piranha II, setting in motion a career associated with groundbreaking sci-fi and ... James Francis Cameron (born August 16, 1954) is a Canadian filmmaker. He is a major figure in the post-New Hollywood era and often uses novel technologies with a classical filmmaking style. Cameron first gained recognition for writing and directing The Terminator (1984), and found further success with Aliens (1986), The Abyss (1989), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), and True Lies (1994), as well as Avatar (2009) and its sequels. He directed, wrote, co-produced, and co-edited Titanic (1997 ... A mostly unqualified triumph for James Cameron , who offers a dizzying blend of spectacular visuals and old-fashioned melodrama.