James Cameron and wife, Suzy Amis Cameron, are selling their longtime oceanfront California ranch for $33 million.
The roughly 100-acre property was purchased by the “Titanic” director in 1999 for $4.37 million, records show.
Cameron, 68, had written the blockbuster movie, “Avatar,” at the ranch. He used an ocean-facing room upstairs in the house as inspiration.
Located on the Gaviota Coast of Santa Barbara County, Cameron told the Wall Street Journal they were letting go of their beloved estate, known as Hollister Ranch, since they spend most of their time in New Zealand.
The main house occupies over 8,000-square-feet and comes with five bedrooms and six bathrooms, and is surrounded by various hiking trails.
The estate also contains a 2,000-square-foot guesthouse and a tennis court. There is also a 24,000-square-foot equestrian barn, which Cameron said has been used to store a helicopter and various other vehicles, sometimes working on submarines there for his famous underwater expeditions.
Cameron initially purchased the property to find a more rural, agricultural property to escape their Malibu lifestyle.
“As you drive along that coastal road, the cares of the world go away,” Cameron told The Journal.
After buying the house, they spent years renovating and remodeling the space.
“The previous owner had had a lot of marble,” the director said. “We brought it back down to something that felt connected to the land.”
Additional features include a large, lagoon-style pool, surrounded by palm trees, which Cameron described as having “a Hawaiian resort kind of feel to it.”
The Camerons now spend most of their days as environmental advocates who founded a Los Angeles “green” school and operate several plant-based food ventures. At the ranch, they have been growing their own organic foods from their own gardens.
They also have several pets on the ranch, including pigs, goats and donkeys. Due to Cameron’s vast interest in marine life, he often keeps a pair of military-grade binoculars by the window to spot the gray whales, the occasional humpback, sea otters, seals, dolphins and sea lions.
Surfers are also often observed cruising the waves.
Meanwhile, the property is power and water independent. Solar and wind power total up to 100 kilowatts and holds enough storage to stay off-grid indefinitely. There are two wells for agricultural uses and another that supplies drinking water.
“I think if the world ends, it’s going to end everywhere, so we’ve got to work pretty hard to make sure that doesn’t happen,” Cameron told the outlet. “But in terms of short-term shocks, where you do want to make sure that your family’s secure, this would be a good place to weather a storm.”
Emily Kellenberger of Village Properties/Forbes Global Properties and Jeff Kruthers of Hollister Ranch Realty.
“We are thrilled to represent James Cameron and Suzy Amis Cameron at Hollister Ranch,” Kellenberger told The Post. “Their exceptional ‘Front Row’ Hollister Ranch property presents the jewel in the crown of Hollister Ranch, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to acquire remarkable ocean-view acreage, multiple structures with abundant amenities, and to join the Hollister Ranch community.”
Hollister Ranch, which holds 30 oceanfront parcels, including the Camerons’ parcel, has been a subject of debate concerning public access to California beaches.
Sharing the same sentiment with many of his neighbors, Cameron said he favors limiting access to the beach, for fear that “it will get damaged and degraded like almost everywhere else in California.”
Maintaining his privacy is also a concern. “I’m an old-school land rights kind of guy in that regard,” he told The Journal.
Meanwhile, the Camerons own about 5,000 acres of land in New Zealand and 10,000 acres in Canada’s Saskatchewan, where they are developing new hybrids for fava beans and plant-based proteins.
They also spend time in L.A., near the director’s studio space in Manhattan Beach, and Austin, Texas, where he also sometimes shoots. The pair also have a home in Crested Butte, Colo.
“We don’t believe in having a gigantic carbon footprint,” James Cameron said. “So we felt it was time to pass the baton to somebody else.”
“One major criticism, especially if you’re seen as a high-visibility, or high-net-worth person is, ‘Oh, you’ve got all these properties all over the place. That’s not very sustainable.’ We’re trying to walk the walk of sustainability.”
The Post has reached out to Cameron’s reps for comment.
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