In the spirit of TIFF 2012 winding down this weekend, I’m interested in hearing what some of our readers most anticipated pics coming out of the festival are. For me, I was already psyched for films such as Looper, Cloud Atlas, and The Master, but early buzz has also peaked my interest in The Place Beyond the Pines, End of Watch, Spring Breakers, Iceberg Slim: Portrait of a Pimp, Dredd 3D, and At Any Price among others. What about you? Where there films that showed up on your radar while following the festival? What about a film you were looking forward to that you were disappointed didn’t fare quite as well as you had hoped (for me, this was Passion)? Let us know in the comments and be sure to check out this week’s fifth spot for a link that can help you get caught up on all of our TIFF 2012 coverage.

In addition to that fifth spot, also on the docket for this week’s Top 5 is a slew of video interviews for Paul W. S. Anderson‘s Resident Evil: Retribution, the first full trailer for Steven Spielberg‘s Lincoln, James Cameron talking the future of Avatar and what his take on Jurassic Park would have been like, and Steve’s video interviews with some of the major names behind Finding Nemo 3D. Brief recaps and links to each lie after the jump.

Jon Landau, a longtime collaborator with James Cameron, recently spoke about the progress of Avatar 2 and Avatar 3, but now we have an idea of what the fourth film will be.  From Cameron himself comes word that Avatar 4 will likely be a prequel that explores the colonization process of Pandora before the events of Avatar.  While the creative team is still working on the scripts for the two sequels, Cameron admits he has not yet put pen to paper for the prequel, but seems to have the kernel of an idea in mind.  Hit the jump to hear what he had to say.

Though 20th Century Fox ensured that James Cameron’s next film after Avatar would be a sequel to the highest grossing film of all time, the director has been taking his sweet time getting the project going.  Cameron’s been busy diving to the ocean’s deepest point and documenting it in the film Deepest Challenge, but it appears he’s finally getting ready to return to Pandora.  We previously heard that the director would probably be filming Avatar 2 and 3 at the same time, and latest word from the filmmaker was that he was “in the Avatar business period,” meaning he’s only interested in making Avatar films from here on out.  At the same time, Cameron first dropped word about a possible Avatar 4, and now star Sigourney Weaver claims that the director will film all three Avatar sequels at once.  Hit the jump for more.

In last week’s opening paragraph I welcomed the summer movie season into the fold by way of The Avengers. Earlier this week it dawned on me that another season is upon us as well. One that is nearly as costly as a summer blockbuster, albeit far less anticipated by yours truly: wedding season. Over the course of the next few months, I’ll attend no fewer than four ceremonies/receptions (not including my own) and, while I’ll be honored to have been invited to share a special moment with friends new and old, I’ll likely fall behind on my summer movie checklist. So, if you start noticing Top 5 opening paragraphs having less to do with film than what type of dessert was served at the reception, you have my most sincere advance apology.

Wedding disclaimers aside, awaiting you on the other side of this week’s Top 5 is James Cameron saying he only wants to make Avatar movies from now on, the first trailer for director Ruben Fleischer‘s Gangster Squad, Prometheus‘ R-rating, Matt’s letter of recommendation for Joss Whedon, and Dark Shadows coverage including interviews with Johnny Depp, Tim Burton, and Seth Grahame-Smith. A brief recap and link to each ensues after the jump.

After the absurd success of Titanic in 1997 and 1998, it took director James Cameron more than a decade to get around to his next feature film, Avatar, which debuted to more absurd success in 2009 and 2010.  We must always admire Cameron’s ability to deliver original properties that are both commercial hits and critical favorites.  But according to the director, he’s done with the worldbuilding aspect of filmmaking:

“Last year I basically completely disbanded my production company’s development arm. So I’m not interested in developing anything. I’m in the Avatar business. Period. That’s it. I’m making Avatar, Avatar 2, Avatar 3, maybe Avatar 4.”

Hit the jump for Cameron’s full explanation.