James Cameron finally addresses Amy Poehler's controversial marriage joke 'that went too far'
James Cameron has fired back at Amy Poehler over a decade after she made an ‘ignorant dig’ regarding his relationship with one of his ex-wives.
In 2013, Poehler, 54, headed up the Golden Globes ceremony at the iconic Beverly Hilton Hotel with 30 Rock’s Tina Fey.
During the event, which saw Ben Affleck’s Argo and Les Misérables winning big, the Parks and Recreation star took a comedic pop at director Cameron, 71, and his third wife, Kathryn Bigelow, 74.
Bigelow, a two-time Academy Award winner, was nominated in the Golden Globe Best Director category for her work on Zero Dark Thirty.
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She was pitted alongside Steven Spielberg, Ang Lee, and Quentin Tarantino, all of who lost out to Affleck, 53.
In her opening monologue, Poehler referenced Zero Dark Thirty's eyebrow-raising depiction of torture, stating: “When it comes to torture, I trust the lady who spent three years married to James Cameron.”
Variety reported that, at the time, awards nominee Jessica Chastain’s jaw ‘dropped’ while other members of the audience were ‘visibly shocked’ by the joke.
In a new interview with The New York Times, the Avatar director has slammed Poehler’s quip about Bigelow, whom he was married to between 1989 and 1991.
“Amy Poehler’s remark was an ignorant dig, at an event which is supposed to be a celebration of cinema and filmmakers, not a roast,” Cameron proclaimed.
“I’m pretty thick-skinned, and happy to be the butt of a good-natured joke, but that went too far.”
He added: “The fact that people found it funny shows exactly what they think of me, even though they have no idea who I am or how I work.”
LADbible has contacted Amy Poehler’s reps for further comment.
The Independent wrote that the comment may have referred to Cameron’s alleged ‘perfectionist’ behaviour on set.
Kate Winslet once told the Guardian that the director had ‘a temper like you wouldn't believe’ while actor Sam Worthington alleged he would ‘nail’ a mobile phone to the wall with a nailgun if he heard it ping.
“Would I nail a cellphone to the wall with a nailgun? Absolutely, if it went off in the middle of a take, but it doesn't mean I would be emotionally enraged,” he confessed to the Independent in 2013.
“I would do it in a calculated theatrical way. But when the story gets told later, it sounds like somebody who's constantly off at the deep end.”
Elsewhere in The New York Times interview, the Titanic icon remarked he was pitted against his former flame during the 2009/10 awards season.
At the time, Avatar was facing off against The Hurt Locker, with the latter picking up six Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay.
Meanwhile, the first in Cameron’s sci-fi series picked up the crown for Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, and Best Visual Effects.
According to the filmmaker, he was the ‘first one applauding’ when The Hurt Locker won Bigelow the Best Director Oscar.
He said: “Kathryn and I thought the whole meta-narrative around us was pretty funny.
“I was a little concerned that it would just take away from her credibility as a filmmaker. It started to turn into a conversation that wasn’t about her film, and that bothered both of us.”
The third instalment in Cameron’s Avatar film franchise, Fire and Ash, is in cinemas now.
Topics: Film, Celebrity, Sex and Relationships, Oscars, Academy Awards
Ella Scott