Director James Cameron waves to photographers at a promo event for his film "Avatar" in Beijing on December 23, 2009. [File Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

Director James Cameron is facing a US$50 million court case over his 2009 film "Avatar".

British artist Roger Dean has accused Cameron of stealing aspect of his body of work, which was created over a period of 40 years.

Dean claims that the Tree of Life and Home Tree of the Na'vi are "willful and deliberate" copies of elements in his work.

The film includes vast computer-generated floating islands, jungle wildlife and tree-dwellings.

"Avatar" made cinematic history as the first film to gross over US$2 billion at the box office and still holds the title of the highest-grossing film of all time.

The film, known for its use of cutting-edge 3D technique, earned an impressive 9 Oscar nominations and three wins.

Cameron faced and triumphed in two cases of intellectual property theft last year, and is currently facing accusations of script theft from screenwriter Bryant Moore.

Two sequels to "Avatar" are already in pre-production, with the first expected in December 2014 and the second in 2015.

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