James Cameron Moves Family To New Zealand For Sanity

James Cameron, the Oscar-winning director behind cinematic blockbusters like Titanic and Avatar, has never been shy about making bold choices—on screen or off. But his most recent move, both literal and figurative, has captured the attention of fans and observers around the world: Cameron and his family have left the United States and made New Zealand their permanent home. The decision, which the 71-year-old filmmaker discussed in detail during a revealing episode of "In Depth with Graham Bensinger" released on January 21, 2026, was the result of years of dreaming, careful planning, and, ultimately, a response to the tumultuous events of the last decade.

Cameron’s love affair with New Zealand began unexpectedly in 1994, when, as he recounted to Bensinger, a flight delay en route to the South Pole left him stranded in Christchurch. What started as a travel hiccup quickly became a life-changing experience. “I went to New Zealand for the first time in '94. I was on my way to the South Pole, and we wound up getting stuck there because the flights were grounded because of ice conditions,” Cameron recalled. The extra time allowed him to explore the area, and he soon found himself enchanted by "the country, the scenery, the people, the kind of way of life there." He made himself a promise: “I'm going to come live here someday.”

Life, as it often does, intervened. Cameron married his fifth and current wife, Suzy Amis, in 2000. The couple, who would go on to have three daughters—Claire, now 23; Quinn, 21; and Elizabeth, 18—settled in Malibu and Santa Barbara, balancing family life with Cameron’s demanding film career. He also has a 31-year-old daughter, Josephine, from his previous marriage to actress Linda Hamilton. But the dream of New Zealand never faded. “When Suzy and I were first getting serious, she said, ‘Fine, no problem.’ She was game,” Cameron told Bensinger, reflecting on their early conversations about relocating. “Now, later, we have children, we have a family, we’ve got roots in Malibu and Santa Barbara, that conversation had to be amended slightly, but we did say after ‘Avatar,’ let’s make this happen.”

The pivotal moment came after the release of the first Avatar film in 2009. In 2011, the Camerons purchased a farm in New Zealand, starting a period of frequent travel between their two homes. “We were shooting in New Zealand. We came back for Christmas, then COVID-19 hit, and we didn’t get back down there,” Cameron explained. The pandemic, and the global chaos it unleashed, became the final catalyst. “So then I had to move mountains to get our production unit back up and running in New Zealand, and we just decided at that point in time that it was time to make the move as a family.”

What set New Zealand apart for the Camerons was not just its breathtaking scenery—though that certainly didn’t hurt—but the country’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. “New Zealand had eliminated the virus completely,” Cameron said, highlighting the nation’s remarkable achievement of eliminating COVID-19 not once, but twice, before a mutated form broke through. Even then, the country’s vaccination rate soared to 98%. “This is why I love New Zealand,” he continued. “People there are, for the most part, sane as opposed to the United States, where you had a 62% vaccination rate, and that’s going down—going the wrong direction.”

The contrast between his two homes became starker as the pandemic wore on. Cameron praised New Zealand’s collective commitment to science and public health, while expressing concern for what he saw as growing polarization and distrust in the United States. “Are you kidding me? Where would you rather live?” he asked rhetorically. “A place that actually believes in science, and is sane, and where people can work together cohesively to a common goal, or a place where everybody’s at each other’s throats, extremely polarized, turning its back on science, and basically would be in utter disarray if another pandemic appears?”

When Bensinger suggested that New Zealand’s natural beauty might have been a draw, Cameron was quick to clarify: “I’m not there for the scenery. I’m there for the sanity.” For Cameron, the move was about more than just landscapes—it was about values, community, and a sense of belonging. “It means a lot. It’s something I’ve worked toward, something I’ve had to sacrifice for,” he told New Zealand outlet Stuff when he officially became a New Zealand citizen in August 2025. “If you’re going to uproot your family and move somewhere, you have to invest, you have to be part of it, you have to earn standing. I just think you’ve got to earn your right to be in a place.”

Cameron’s decision was not made in isolation. He joins a growing list of American celebrities who have sought new homes abroad in response to political and social changes in the United States. Rosie O’Donnell, for example, moved to Ireland with her youngest daughter just days before Donald Trump’s inauguration, saying, “I miss many things about life there at home, and I’m trying to find a home here in this beautiful country. And when it is safe for all citizens to have equal rights there, in America, that’s when we will consider coming back.” Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi also relocated to England following the 2024 election results, telling the BBC, “We got here the day before the election and woke up to lots of texts from our friends with crying emojis, and I was like, ‘He got in.’ And we’re like, ‘We’re staying here.’”

Cameron, for his part, has not shied away from criticizing the political climate in the U.S., especially under Donald Trump. In a February 2025 interview with Stuff, he described the era as “a turn away from everything decent.” He noted, with a hint of exasperation, “There’s something nice about the New Zealand outlets—at least they’ll put it on page three. I just don’t want to see that guy’s face anymore on the front page of the paper. It’s inescapable there, it’s like watching a car crash over and over and over.”

Despite the challenges of uprooting a family and building a new life halfway across the world, Cameron remains resolute in his decision. The move, he says, is about more than personal comfort or professional convenience. It’s a statement about the kind of society he wants to be a part of—a society that values science, sanity, and working together for the common good. “If you’re going to uproot your family and move somewhere, you have to invest, you have to be part of it, you have to earn standing,” he said. “I just think you’ve got to earn your right to be in a place.”

As the world continues to grapple with the aftershocks of the pandemic and the shifting tides of politics, James Cameron’s journey from Hollywood to New Zealand offers a glimpse into the choices some are making in search of stability, community, and, above all, a sense of sanity.