James Cameron has been promising a series of Avatar sequels for roughly a decade, and
audiences are still waiting.
“And so now you're worried about the sequels that are coming out?"
We've already heard quite a few tidbits about what the upcoming films will entail — and
we've rounded up all the rumors and spoilers right here.
James Cameron clearly wasn't interested in churning out another Avatar sequel just for
the sake of it.
Since 2010, he's been dropping hints about what the future of the franchise involves
— and it's an increasingly ungainly vision that includes several movie sequels, novels,
and much more.
Details are often frustratingly vague — heck, even the release dates keep changing.
In fact, trying to pin down exactly when we'll get to see Avatar 2 and its many sequels is
something of a fool's errand.
Back in 2010, Cameron said the next two films would be coming out in December 2014 and December
2015, respectively.
But when January 2015 rolled around with no sign of Avatar 2, he said the sequels had
been delayed… but they'd be coming out in 2017 — probably.
Later in 2015, Cameron also hinted that there'd be an Avatar 5.
In April 2016, James Cameron told folks at Comic Con:
"The next time I see you will be on Pandora."
He also claimed that Christmastime would officially be Avatar-time… because Avatar 2 would be
coming out on Christmas 2018.
Of course, that didn't happen.
Then, in April 2017, the timeline shifted again — and Cameron announced we could expect
Avatar 2 on December 18th, 2020.
Is your head spinning yet?
"If you feel light-headed or dizzy -- "
"Ooohhh"
"You're wiggling your toes!"
"That's good."
December 18th, 2020 was the official word for another two years — but that all changed
on May 2019.
After Disney acquired Fox — the studio that had previously owned Avatar — it was announced
that,
"Four forthcoming Avatar films, expanding the vibrant world of Pandora, will release
on the pre-Christmas weekend every other year beginning in 2021."
That's the story for now, anyway.
"Avatar 2, 3, 4, 5…"
'Are you really?"
"Seriously, they're all written.
And we've done the capture."
We still don't know for sure what the official title of Avatar 2 will be.
At one point, James Cameron reportedly didn't even want the word 'avatar' in future installments
of the series.
In 2012, he pointed out that Jake left his avatar to become a real Na'Vi at the end of
Avatar.
"Whatever happens tonight, either way, I'm never coming back to this place."
Because of this major plot development, Cameron claimed the term "avatar" no longer applies
to the series.
But perhaps he's had a change of heart.
Or perhaps he was strongarmed by studio brass into keeping the word "avatar" in the film
titles.
In 2018, the BBC claimed they'd seen documents that referred to four upcoming Avatar projects
that were called:
Avatar: The Way of Water
Avatar: The Seed Bearer
Avatar: The Tulkun Rider
And, last but certainly not least,
Avatar: The Quest for Eywa
Of course, as with all things Avatar, all these titles should be taken with an unusually
large grain of salt.
James Cameron has said that most of what we'll see onscreen in the four Avatar sequels is
motion-capture footage.
His team reportedly started filming back in September 2017, working on Avatar 2 and Avatar
3 back-to-back… as well as scenes for the fourth installment.
At an IMAX Q&A in February 2019, producer Jon Landau revealed:
“We’re going to do our live-action filming in New Zealand in the spring of this year."
Then, in an interview with Empire that same month, James Cameron revealed:
"That pesky little live-action component is going to cost me five months of my life, across
the two movies."
We expected to see Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana return for the Avatar sequels… but
we were quite surprised to hear that Sigourney Weaver and Stephen Lang are reportedly returning
for all four films, too.
After all, both characters were supposedly killed off in the first film: Dr. Grace Augustine
was struck by a fatal bullet, and Colonel Quaritch was hit by two arrows fired by Saldana's
character, Neytiri.
Weaver claims she'll be playing a different character in the upcoming movies, but James
Cameron confirmed that Lang will somehow be returning as the ill-willed colonel.
In fact, he'll supposedly be the primary villain in future films — which isn't to say he
was a sweetheart in the original Avatar.
"You crossed a line."
In October 2017, it was revealed that Oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet had been cast as a character
named Ronal.
Talking to Vanity Fair in 2017, Cameron said:
"She’s very excited.
She plays a character who’s part of the Sea People, the reef people.
The one thing she did do is demand that she do all her own water work."
The fact that Cameron and Winslet are working together again may raise a few eyebrows.
After all, their experience filming Titanic didn't exactly sound like smooth sailing — no
pun intended.
Reportedly, Winslet was often afraid that she'd drown while filming Titanic, and she
once said of Cameron:
"There were times when I was genuinely frightened of him.
Jim has a temper like you wouldn’t believe."
But producer Jon Landau claims Winslet took to her watery scenes in the Avatar sequels
like… well, like a duck takes to water.
He told Collider:
"Kate Winslet had to train in this and she got up to a static breath hold of just about
seven minutes.
It’s amazing, it’s mind over matter.
You see Kate going underwater and she just felt so comfortable."
That's no small feat.
In 2017, it was announced that Game of Thrones actress Oona Chaplin would be playing a character
named Varang.
Deadline reported that:
"[Varang is] a strong and vibrant central character who spans the entire saga of the
sequels."
In March 2019, the official Avatar Twitter account posted that Chaplin would be joined
by a fellow former Game of Thrones cast member.
"Run away, little Theon.
It's what you do best."
The tweet reads:
"Brendan Cowell has been cast in the Avatar sequels as Mick Scoresby, captain of a large-scale
marine hunting vessel on Pandora."
And here's more great news for you: on February 6th, 2019, an announcement on the Avatar Twitter
account revealed,
"We are thrilled to share that Edie Falco is joining the #AvatarFamily as General Ardmore,
the Commander in charge of the RDA's interests in the Avatar Sequels!
Are you as excited as we are?"
During an IMAX Q&A in February 2019, producer Jon Landau praised that particular casting
choice:
"In typical Jim [Cameron] fashion, he finds this powerful woman to play what could be
very easily [be] a male role if people were just to read the script."
Two months later, it was announced that Michelle Yeoh of Crazy Rich Asians would play a scientist
named Dr. Karina Mogue.
James Cameron tweeted,
"Michelle has always created unique and memorable characters.
I look forward to working with her to do the same thing on the Avatar sequels."
Avatar's official Twitter feed isn't the only social media account buzzing with exciting
casting news.
On April 3rd, 2019, Fast & Furious star Vin Diesel posted a video to his Instagram account:
“[There is one person in Hollywood that I've always wanted to work with and learn
from, and… where is he?"
"Yeah, where is that guy?"
Of course, that strongly implied Diesel would be appearing in at least one of the Avatar
sequels.
The actor later confirmed his involvement while speaking to Entertainment Tonight at
the Avengers: Endgame premiere in April 2019.
By the sound of it, he's super-excited to be reunited with a certain co-star.
"My favorite in the whole cast, or the closest to my family, is Zoe Saldana… hence Avatar,
hence why I'm doing Avatar."
At the moment, Diesel's IMDb page only lists his upcoming role in Avatar 2 as "rumored."
If he is in the film, you might have to be especially eagle-eyed to spot him.
Motion capture is tricky like that.
Speaking to Empire, James Cameron revealed that a large chunk of Avatar 2 will focus
on Jake and Neytiri's eight-year-old daughter.
He also revealed that Jake and Neytiri are still a couple, and a crucial plot point involves
a huge disagreement between the two lovebirds.
"And you may choose a woman.
We have many fine women."
In fact, the audience is apparently going to watch this fight play out through the eyes
of their daughter.
It sounds like there will be lots of child actors in the Avatar sequels.
In 2017, we were introduced to seven kids who will be playing various Na'vi — either
from Neytiri's Omaticaya clan, or the Metkayina, a community of ocean dwellers who evidently
live on reefs.
As Cameron explained, he now sees the Avatar films as a family saga — one that's akin
to the Godfather movies.
He says that introducing kids into the action signifies a major shift in perspective for
the adult characters… because now they have to consider how their actions will affect
their families.
As he tells it:
"[Avatar 2 is] a continuation of the same characters… but what happens when warriors
who are willing to go on suicide charges and leap off cliffs, what happens when they grow
up and have their own kids?
It becomes a very different story."
At least two stars will be on their home turf while shooting the live-action scenes for
the new Avatar films.
We're talking about New Zealand here, not Pandora.
Outside of his home country, Cliff Curtis is best known for playing Travis in the AMC
spinoff series Fear the Walking Dead.
He'll be playing the character of Tonowari, the leader of the Metkayina.
Curtis told Newstalk ZB that he didn't even have to audition:
"[I got] a phone call from James Cameron.
That turned into a Skype call and he offered me four movies.
It was that simple.
It was a straight invitation."
There's one more New Zealander heading off to Pandora: actor, writer, and director Jemaine
Clement.
You may recognize him as one half of the comedy duo Flight of the Conchords, or perhaps you've
seen his work on the 2014 vampire comedy What We Do in the Shadows.
Clement is also an executive producer on the FX series of the same name, which is loosely
based on the film, of course.
“The hardest thing about making a show like this is not being bitten by vampires."
On May 15th, the official Avatar Twitter account announced:
"Jemaine Clement has been cast in the Avatar sequels as Dr. Garvin, a marine biologist
on Pandora.
Glad to have you aboard"
In 2010, Jon Landau told MTV that James Cameron was planning to write a novel that offers
more insight into the various characters' backgrounds.
Specifically, he said that we'd be hearing a lot about Dr. Augustine's time teaching
in the schoolhouse.
"This was our school…
Now it's just storage."
We'd also learn more details about Jake's identical twin brother Tommy.
"Jesus, Tommy."
"The strong prey on the weak.
A guy with a knife took all Tommy would ever be."
Landau noted that it wouldn't be a novelization of the first movie, but a separate story that
goes into far more detail than the first film.
Cameron confirmed this, saying that he'd always intended to write a novel if Avatar ever made
any money.
Which it most certainly did.
But as plans for the follow-up films stalled, plans for the book evidently stalled, too.
Then, in 2017, The Los Angeles Times reported that Penguin Random House was teaming up with
Cameron to release a whole slew of books based on Avatar… stories that would be geared
towards children and adults alike.
The first books are expected to come out just before the Avatar 2 premiere… which means
we still have to wait awhile before we can read them.
If you enjoyed the colorful visuals of Pandora, you'll be pleased to know that the next four
films are all going to be set there, too.
In an IMAX Q&A, producer Jon Landau said,
"We realized that if we looked at Earth, we could spend our whole life traveling the globe
[...]. Let’s do that on Pandora.
Let Pandora really truly be that metaphor where we get to go see all these incredible
different environments."
Meanwhile, a lot of the action in Avatar 2 takes place underwater — which reportedly
led to a number of production hitches.
In November 2017, Cameron noted that,
"Basically, whenever you add water to any problem, it just gets ten times harder."
With any luck, we'll be able to enjoy these Avatar sequels before our entire planet is
underwater.
Check out one of our newest videos right here!
Plus, even more Looper videos about your favorite movies are coming soon.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so you don't miss a single one.