Cirque du Soleil's show Toruk inspired by James Cameron's Avatar

The Cirque du Soleil's new show, Torukset to launch in Montreal just weeks from nowisinspired by the highest-grossing movie of all time worldwide, James Cameron's Avatar.

The show is set inPandora, thousands of years before the events of the movie.

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Threatened by ecological disaster,three young Na'vi go on a quest to find Toruk, a giant predatory bird hidden in the forest of Pandora to help them save their planet.

Fans of the movie will see the same blue Na'viinhabitants of Pandora, hear them speak and recognize many of thecreatures that Cameron created for Avatar.

James Cameron a Cirque fan

Toruk was written and directedby Montreal duoMichel Lemieux and Victor Pilon.The twoare known around the world for their immersive multimedia shows. They also wrote and directedDelerium for Cirque in 2006.

But even so, the pair saidputting together a circus spectacle inspired by Avatarwas a bit intimidating.

They knew James Cameron was a long-time fan of Cirque du Soleil:He'd shown his Na'vicharacters to CirqueCEODaniel Lamarrebefore the release of Avatar, telling Lamarrethatthey were inspired by Cirque figures.

So Lemieux and PilontookCameron their script.

"We were kind ofshy, but we presented it to James Cameron himself, andhe smiled and said, 'Everything in this scenariogoes with my universe,'" Lemieux recalled.

But Lemieux said Camerontold them:'I'm a movie director. You're a show director. I'm not going totry to direct your show. I'm going tohelp you.' And he became our script doctor."

"It's kind of a luxury to have James Cameron as ascript doctor."

High stakes

"It's story driven with an actor that will talk to us and lead us through the quest of our three heroes. And also we've miked some of the artists who will speak in Na'vi," saidco-creatorVictor Pilon.

The narrator will speak English or French, depending on the location of the performance.

It's also the first show to be produced since the Montrealcircus company was sold to an international consortium, which includes a major Chinese partner, Fosun Group.

After several years of cost-cutting and closing shows, Cirque is counting on the box office success of Avatar in China tohelp break into the lucrative Chinese market.

Toruk begins an arena tour of North America with previews in the U.S. in mid-November.

The world premiere isDecember 21 at the Bell Centrein Montreal. It will tour North American arenas in 2016 and head to China in 2017.

Cirque is hoping to keep Toruk touring for the next decade.