James Cameron is currently in the process of getting Avatar 3 finished up while also working on developing the other sequels in the franchise. During a recent interview on the red carpet at this weekend’s Saturn Awards, the filmmaker teased that Avatar 3 will be “a tougher ride” than Avatar: The Way of Water, and the story will feature new challenges for the characters.
The director said: “It’s just a continuation of the epic. You’ll see new environments, new characters. The characters that you know and love will be challenged even more, and go through some trials and tribulations. I think it’s going to be a tougher ride than A2, in a good way.”
Cameron previously offered some insight into Avatar 3 and who the film will focus on, saying: “Lo’ak really emerged as a character that people went with. So I might find ways to…he’s already the narrator. I’m giving away something here, but this is OK. I think it could be intriguing for people to think about what’s coming. Jake was our voiceover narrator for movie one and for movie two, and we have a different narrator for each of the subsequent films. We see it through the eyes of a different character. Movie three is through Lo’ak’s eyes.”
Cameron also teased the fire element of the third film and revealed that two new cultures would be introduced, saying: “Fire has a symbolic purpose in the film and there’s a culture that is specifically around that concept. That’s probably saying too much as we speak.”
Cameron previously talked a little bit about the representation of fire in Avatar 3, saying: “To show cultures different from those I have already shown. The fire will be represented by the ‘Ash People.’ I want to reveal the Na’vi from another angle because, for the moment, I have only shown their good sides. In the early films, there are very negative human examples and very positive Na’vi examples. In Avatar 3, we’ll have the opposite.”
The filmmaker went on to reveal that two other new cultures will be introduced in the next movie, saying: “You’re going to meet two completely new cultures in the next film. We met the Omaticaya, we met the Metkayina, and you’re going to meet two new cultures in the next film, and it kind of rove a little more freely around the world of Pandora to different places.”
It was also recently teased that the movie will be “bigger than you can imagine.” The question is, will the upcoming sequels also break the $2 billion box office barrier like the first two movies? One thing is for sure, Cameron has the magic touch with three of the top four highest grossing films of all time being his movies.
The movie stars Zoe Saldana, Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Cliff Curtis, Joel David Moore, CCH Pounder, Edie Falco, Jemaine Clement, and Kate Winslet.
Avatar 3 is currently expected to be in theaters in December of 2025.