LOS ANGELES - As "Avatar: The Way of Water" climbs the box office charts, director James Cameron stuck his hands and feet in cement outside the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood on Thursday to commemorate his contributions to the film business.

Longtime collaborator Sigourney Weaver tricked Cameron and producer Jon Landau into going barefoot for the ceremony. Usually, honorees keep their shoes on.

"Avatar: The Way of Water" is expected to pass $2 billion in ticket sales in the coming days, making it among the highest-grossing movies of all time, along with the original "Avatar" and Cameron's "Titanic."

"The box office from our perspective allows us to continue. It's empowering," Cameron told Reuters. He has already filmed a third movie in the series.

"Writing and designing the subsequent two films, it's now going to pay off, so that's a good feeling," he added.

(Reporting by Rollo Ross; Writing by Lisa Richwine; Editing by Chris Reese)