The inclusion of James Cameron’s world of Avatar at Disneyland California Adventure was announced back in 2023, but what’s going on with it now? Well, The Walt Disney Company inundated fans with a ton of announcements during Anaheim’s D23 Expo last weekend. But the latest on DCA’s Avatar expansion has me starting to think it’s never going to happen. Let’s talk about it.

The Latest On Disneyland California Adventure’s Avatar Attraction

While I was in attendance at D23, I, like many fans, made a trip to the convention’s Imagineering Pavilion. There, I saw tons of models for the expansion of Avengers Campus and various upcoming Walt Disney World attractions like Tropical Americas, Piston Peak, Monsters, Inc Land and Villains Land. Among them was also one for Avatar and its planned boat ride. Check it out:

Now, we’ve known since last year that Disney had planned to close down California Adventure’s Monsters, Inc ride and replace it with this Avatar land. And yet, the dark ride has since been saved from closure until sometime next year.

Given the model’s appearance at D23, I had expected we’d get an update on when they planned to break ground on the new land, but then it was only briefly mentioned during Saturday’s D23 Disney Experiences Showcase. As a cherry on top, we learned that the House of Mouse has decided it will delay the Avatar attraction in order to upgrade Disneyland’s Tomorrowland first.

The President of Disneyland Resort, Jill Estorino, also said something interesting that has me skeptical about the arrival of Avatar. She said that since DCA has recently been getting new upgrades like the Avengers Campus expansion and the upcoming Coco ride lately, “it’s really standing on its own”. As she added, via MickeyVisit:

Here’s the thing: upgrading Tomorrowland is a huge undertaking, and the announcement was made at D23 as they had just decided to do it. So if Avatar is next in line after Tomorrowland, it feels like they are shelving the Avatar attraction rather than actively working on it anymore.

Will There Be Demand For Avatar Years From Now?

Fans have been asking for an update to Tomorrowland for a long time, but to deliver on the promise of both honoring the traditional land and making it anew, it’s going to take years! It has me wondering if The Walt Disney Company is even sold on adding Avatar to DCA in the first place. Earlier this year, there were some rumors that Disney was possibly changing their mind and making that area into a land for Zootopia, instead.

It certainly helps the case for that property given its sequel made $1.87 billion worldwide last year and Avatar: Fire And Ash performed a bit under expectations at 1.49 billion globally. If Disney was confident in Avatar land, and the concept has certainly already been thought of, what’s stopping them from just making the land while they figure out Tomorrowland? It all smells fishy to me, and after what I learned at D23, I’m personally unconvinced I’ll ever see this land come to life at DCA.

James Cameron's movies are known for their epic scale and cutting-edge technology, and both of those have been on display for the Avatar franchise (which is streaming with a Disney+ subscription). And while the threequel Fire and Ash won at the box office, it failed to make the same insane money as its predecessors. Fans have been wondering if the Titanic filmmaker will actually direct the final two chapters in the five-movie story, and his latest comments aren't filling me with hope.

The first Avatar movie is the highest grossing movie of all time, and fans have been able to travel to Pandora at Disney parks. Still, Fire and Ash is the lowest-earning chapter in the franchise, and the blockbusters are so expensive that it cast doubt as to whether or not we'll see two more movies. In a recent interview at the GGPAA, Cameron spoke about the possibility of working on more Avatar movies, offering:

That's a long time to be working on one franchise, but James Cameron created a truly magic world with Pandora and the Na'vi. And while the Avatar movies have been criticized for being too long, I would be so bummed if we didn't get to close the loop with the final two movies. Although the director's comments are making me even more nervous.

In the same interview, James Cameron went on to put more doubt in the future of the Avatar films. Namely because he might want to tell some stories set outside of the fictional world of Pandora. In his words:

For his part, the Avatar franchise does have some very specific messaging to audiences. Namely about the dangers of pollution and climate change, and mankind's penchant for destroying the environment. The Na'vi have spent 3 movies defending their planet and fighting the RDA, and James Cameron may have helped young people see the dangers of climate change and pollution as a result.

But is the acclaimed director actually going to move forward with the final two movies? After all, some footage from Avatar 4 is already in the can. Looks like the jury is still out, as Cameron said:

Personally I'm hoping that we get to see the conclusion of Avatar's epic story. I'm invested in the Sully family and their journey, and things really heated up in Fire and Ash (pun intended). There are plenty of narrative threads to pull from, and it would be a bummer if that never happened.

If Cameron bails, this wouldn't be the first time that a planned five-movie franchise has been cut short. The Fantastic Beasts franchise was also scrapped after its threequel The Secrets of Dumbledore failed both critically and financially. And fans have no idea what would have come in the last two movies.

All three Avatar movies are streaming now on Disney+, including Fire and Ash. Fingers crossed that James Cameron and the studio end up committing to completing the story sometime down the line.

Director James Cameron has always had big visions and big dreams for the Avatar movies, and it seems like he’s full speed ahead. There was an over 10-year gap between the first second films in the franchise, but the third film, Fire and Ash, came only two years after the sequel, Way of Water. While nothing has officially been announced, there has been movement on the fourth and film installments. Franchise star Sam Worthington recently revealed he'd already seen the scripts for those two films, and his comments are making me excited.

Worthington has been promoting his miniseries, I Will Find You, as of late, and he was recently asked what he is most excited about for the next Avatar movies. The actor -- who plays Jake Sully in the franchise -- didn't get into specifics about the fourth and fifth movies, which are tentatively dated for n2029 and 2031. Still, Worthington did share enthusiastic thoughts about having seen the screenplays He said CBS Mornings (as shared on Instagram):

It's great to hear that Worthington is apparently pleased with what he's seen. That should serve as a glimmer of hope for fans like myself in regard to what Cameron and co. want for the future of this franchise. I'm most excited that the fourth film is Worthington's favorite, because Fire and Ash ends in a place where there's some closure to the story. However, should it continue, there are great opportunities for the story to go in some fresh directions. Still, I may have to temper my hype for the moment.

The reason Worthington says he hopes they can keep doing the films is because the Avatar movies are famously some of the most expensive movies ever made. While the first two Avatar films became two of the highest grossing movies of all time, Avatar: Fire and Ash didn’t reach the same heights despite making over a billion dollars. The production budgets are incredibly high, and making the movies the way Cameron wants is seemingly just becoming more expensive.

On that note, Cameron has been candid about wanting to finish out the series, though he wants to do so in a way that's affordable. From a creative standpoint, Cameron is ready to make those other two movies, which he explained to CinemaBlend months ago. I'd imagine that if any filmmaker could solve a cost problem it would be someone is skilled as Cameron. Additionally, Cameron has also been thinking about story changes he wants to make for a fourth installment.

It could be a while until we finally get to see Avatar 4 and Avatar 5 on the big screen but, for right now, I'm just hoping they actually happen. It'd truly be a shame if Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña and co. didn't get to finish out the Sully family's story in the world of Pandora. For now, fans can revisit the first three Avatar films with a Disney+ subscription.

Zoe Saldaña isn’t the queen of the worldwide box office by chance. The actress seriously worked for it, especially when it comes to portraying the iconic Neytiri for the Avatar movies. When CinemaBlend talked to the actress for Fire And Ash about playing the role for the past fifteen years, she flexed on all the things she can do now. And one really stands out.

The Skills Zoe Saldaña Learned For The Avatar Movies

Saldaña’s Na'vi role is done through performance capture, meaning that she actually does physically perform just about every moment in the film – she just looks very different from the final product we see on the big screen. Here’s what she told us about what she can do because of Neytiri:

What can’t she do? You can check out the interview moment in the clip below:

I’m pretty sure Saldaña could survive on her own in Pandora at this point. There’s one acquired skill she named that I want to talk about though.

I Love How One Of Her Skills Has A Neytiri Twist

As she said in our interview, she’s got solid archery proficiency, but it’s not the normal way one would shoot a bow and arrow. Zoe Saldaña knows how to be an archer “the Na’vi way”, which is sideways. What’s interesting about this little fun fact is that apparently shooting a bow and arrow this way is actually way harder and less precise than the typical way people do archery. So when she says she has good aim it's a really awesome flex. Especially, since she probably doesn’t have to target anything on set well if she doesn’t want to.

Zoe Saldaña has been playing Neytiri since she was 28 years old, and by her estimation she’ll be well into her fifties once the last one comes out. The Oscar winner just turned 48 last week, and the trilogy of movies has helped her become the highest-grossing actor of all time with her name on $15.46 billion across her lifetime so far.

Following Fire And Ash’s release during the holiday season, we’re not sure which direction Avatar will go next or if the franchise will “put on the brakes” after earning less money. Currently Avatar 4 and 5 are on the Disney movie release calendar for 2029 and 2031.

Right now you can see Zoe Saldaña’s Neytiri in the entire Avatar trilogy at home – on Disney+, digital or physical media.

Whenever a director goes back to change an earlier movie, as James Cameron is thinking about doing with his 1986 classic Aliens, people understandably get nervous. Cameron, who has proven just how popular his 3D work is with the Avatar franchise, believes he can update one of the best sci-fi movies of all time AND one of the best horror movies of all time with his 3D technology, and I’m all for it. Usually, I’m one of the people who doesn’t want to see perfection messed with, but that’s not the case here, because I think Cameron has made smart moves with Aliens.

It Looks Like This Is Happening

More than any other director in Hollywood, James Cameron has leaned into 3D technology. The success of the Avatar series is proof-positive that he knows how to create a movie with it, and he doubled down on that with the concert film he made with Billie Eilish, Hit Me Hard and Soft, which came out earlier this year to rave reviews. While promoting that movie, he spoke with Letterboxd about converting Aliens to 3D. Cameron said:

He said that converting the film could work today because of where the technology is today:

If anyone knows just how far the latest 3D technology can go, it’s Cameron, as he’s been largely responsible for pushing the new tech forward with Avatar. It’s one reason I really trust his idea here, but it’s not the only one.

The Last Time He Tweaked Aliens, It Really Worked

A couple of months ago, I wrote about how I’d never seen the director’s cut of Aliens. When I did finally watch it, I loved it. That’s not always the case for me, either. In fact, it’s way more common that I love the original theatrical version over any director’s cut of a movie I love. While there was one added scene I didn’t care for in Aliens, overall, I do think Cameron’s director’s cut is a better movie. And that’s really saying something about a movie that I think even surpasses the first movie in the series.

It’s for that reason that I trust Cameron here. I’ll admit that I’m not the biggest fan of the Avatar films, and I don’t always love 3D movies, but I don’t think Cameron would mess around with Aliens if he didn’t believe that this could work. He’s a master of film technology, so I have to believe he’s going to do right by the film and its legions of fans like me.

Over this past holiday season, James Cameron’s highly anticipated third Avatar movie hit theaters. Avatar: Fire and Ash ended its box office run with a $1.49 billion global haul, becoming one of the biggest hits of the year. Now, the fourth film in this series is currently on Walt Disney Studios’ release calendar for a 2029 release, but how far along is Avatar 4 after Cameron said it is "very likely" to happen? One star just shared an update.

Trinity Jo-Li Bliss plays the role of Tuk, who is the youngest of Jake and Neytiri’s children in the franchise. When speaking to The Direct at the Saturn Awards, the actress said this about how much of Avatar 4 has been filmed so far:

We’ve heard before from Cameron and some of the cast that some of Avatar 4 was shot while they were in production on Way of Water and Fire and Ash, but this update from Bliss definitely offers more insight about what exactly was filmed. It doesn’t sound like that much of the untitled sequel was shot, but Cameron was smart to make sure the cast did sequences prior to a reported eight-year time jump that he had planned for Avatar 4 and 5. Bliss also said this:

What’s wild is that the Avatar sequels were predominantly shot from 2017 to 2020, and stars like Trinity Jo-Li Bliss had to wait until last year to see the final product for Fire and Ash. During this new interview, the 16-year-old said that while Way of Water and Fire and Ash were “basically one story,” the next two planned installments are going to be a “whole new chapter” should they officially go into production.

The reason why Avatar 4’s production isn’t surefire despite making over a billion at the box office reportedly has to do with how much it costs to make these movies. Cameron told CinemaBlend back in December that he’s “artistically” ready to make more Avatar movies, but he’d have to “evaluate” how well Fire And Ash does.

He also spoke about other projects he wants to work on that have nothing to do with Avatar. Since there’s been a decline in box office returns with the franchise, the filmmaker has also previously talked about figuring out “how to bring costs down” for future installments.

One major win about Fire and Ash was the introduction of the villain Varang, who has quickly become a fan favorite among audiences. When talking about Avatar 4 in March, James Cameron discussed wanting to have the character to be “written up a bit more” than he may have originally intended.

So, now, while we wait and see about Avatar 4, James Cameron just co-directed a concert movie with Billie Eilish called Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D), which hits theaters on May 8.

Because of her various roles, Zoe Saldaña currently sits atop the all-time list of high-grossing actors. Avatar, Star Trek and Guardians of the Galaxy are amongst some of Saldaña's best movies and, in the process of making so much money for studios, she's also amassed a strong fanbase. While the there are plenty who line up to watch the A-lister's work, he kids aren't so keen on checking any of it out. However, Saldaña is actually “proud” of the reason they avoid her body of work, and it's quite different from the awkward feelings that prompt other celebrity kids avoid their parents' work.

Thanks to her most recent flick, Avatar: Fire and Ash, which scored $1.490 billion worldwide at the box office, Saldaña nabbed Scarlett Johansson’s crown as the highest-grossing star of all time. During the Crossroads alum's interview with TIME, she got real about who in her family is her biggest fan and who avoids her blockbusters like the plague:

It's sweet hearing that Saldaña's husband, Marco Perego hypes her up and finds her to be both “amazing” and “beautiful” on and off camera. However, I find it funny that her 11-year-old twins Cy Aridio and Bowie Ezio and 9-year-old son Zen Anton Hilario aren't exactly keen on sitting through a Marvel Cinematic Universe movie or an Avatar flick.

Zoe Saldaña’s sons wouldn't be the first children of A-listers who don’t want to watch their parents’ flicks. For instance, Jennifer Garner’s kids stay away from her movies so that their view of their mom isn't distorted, and Jason Isaacs' kids won’t watch his stuff in order to keep from seeing their dad “have sex or murder people” on screen. As for Saldaña’s kids, their reasoning for not watching their mom's work is actually very precious:

I can see where the kids are coming from. There’s no denying that a lot of Zoe Saldaña’s movies are violent. Whether she’s in motion-capture attire while fighting off Pandorian threats in the Avatar movies or slicing through intergalactic enemies as Gamora in the MCU film, she takes on quite a few combat-heavy roles. It seems Saldaña’s kids are already quite conscientious when it comes to violence, and I love that their mom admires them for sticking to that principle.

Also, even though the sons of the Pirates of the Caribbean alum may not watch her movies, they’re still proud of their dear mom and love her. During Saldaña’s TIME Magazine Zoom call, they had no problems interrupting their mom with requests for snacks and hugs. Yes, even an award-winning actress still needs to sweetly attend to her matronly duties when necessary.

So, given that Zoe Saldaña’s sons don't care for violence, I can't help but wonder if they'll still feel compelled to check out any of her non-action-heavy performances at some point. I mean, they're surely too young to see her Academy Award-winning performance in Emilia Pérez right now, but maybe they'll see that and some of the star's other smaller films at some point. We'll have to wait and see but, for now, I wouldn't expect to get any thoughts from the trio of boys about Marvel or Avatar.

Speaking of which, check out Saldaña’s first two Avatar movies and her appearances as Gamora in the MCU flicks by streaming those with a Disney+ subscription.

There was a time when a movie making $1.4 billion worldwide would be treated like an unquestioned victory lap. Parade, confetti, maybe a theme park ride or two. With Avatar: Fire and Ash, the reaction has been a little more complicated. Yes, it made a massive amount of money. No, it didn’t hit the same towering heights as the earlier films. And now, instead of a straightforward “what’s next,” Disney and James Cameron are taking a moment to reassess what the future of Pandora actually looks like.

According to reporting from The Wrap, even Cameron has acknowledged that the next steps aren’t locked in, noting that a continuation is “likely but not 100%.” Behind the scenes, there are already conversations about how to make future entries shorter, more cost-effective, and a bit less risky to produce.

How Expectations Impacted Avatar: Fire & Ash’s Box Office

Part of what affected the third entry's box office performance was expectations. The original Avatar remains the highest-grossing movie of all time. Avatar: The Way of Water cleared more than $2 billion. That’s the standard Cameron set for himself.

So when Fire and Ash comes in closer to $1.4 billion, it creates a strange kind of perception problem. On paper, it’s a massive hit. In context, it looks like a step down. As Paul Dergarabedian, head of marketplace trends at Comscore, put it:

“High-class problems,” they may be, but they’re still problems when you’re dealing with production budgets that reportedly hover around $350 million, plus marketing. The math gets tighter, even at that level.

This is all before you factor in shifting audience habits. The theatrical experience isn’t what it was in 2009, and even major franchises aren’t immune to that reality.

Disney’s Looking to Adjust The Way They Produce Avatar Films

One of the biggest takeaways from the current reporting is that Disney isn’t looking to abandon Avatar, but rather to adjust how installments in the franchise are produced.

That means finding ways to make future entries more efficient without losing what makes them feel like Avatar franchise installments in the first place. Easier said than done, considering how complex these productions are. The films rely on multiple layers of performance capture, digital environments, and years of post-production work involving hundreds of artists.

There’s also the question of scale. These movies have always been built as full theatrical events, the kind that practically demand the biggest screen possible—pulling back too far risks losing what makes them special.

At the same time, Disney is clearly weighing its broader portfolio. Marvel has been recalibrating after a rough stretch. Star Wars is trying a different approach with the upcoming The Mandalorian & Grogu. Pixar has been leaning into sequels, such as the 2026 calendar release of Toy Story 5. Nothing is operating on autopilot right now.

What Happens Next With Avatar

The interesting part is that, despite all this uncertainty, Avatar isn’t exactly going anywhere. Scripts for future films are already written. Portions of new installments have reportedly been shot. And internally, there’s still a belief that the franchise has long-term value, whether that’s through streaming, physical releases, or theme park expansions.

There’s even talk that Cameron might push forward more aggressively after Fire and Ash, treating it less like a slowdown and more like a reset. If anything, this could be the moment where the franchise pivots rather than fades.

Still, the bigger takeaway here is how much the definition of “success” has changed. A billion-dollar movie used to guarantee the next chapter. Now, not so much.

As we wait and see what comes next for the world of Pandora, there are always the first three installments, which are streaming with a Disney+ subscription.

The future of Disneyland Resort is going to be big. A massive expansion, called DisneylandForward, is currently in the early stages and will radically transform the entire resort destination. However, a new report claims that one of the most significant parts of that expansion may now end up not happening at all.

Could Disneyland Cancel The Planned Avatar Land?

It’s been several years since then-CEO Bob Iger announced a planned “Avatar Experience” at Disneyland. We now know that the plan is for an Avatar-themed land at Disney California Adventure park, which would replace the current Hollywood Land. However, The Wrap now suggests those plans may be getting rethought.

Even before the release of Avatar: Fire and Ash, James Cameron was managing expectations regarding the planned two additional movies. He suggested that even if the movie made a lot of money, it might not make enough and that the final two films could be significantly delayed, or possibly not happen at all.

The questionable future of Avatar as a film franchise may, The Wrap suggests, mean that the planned Avatar theme park land is also being reconsidered. If fans aren’t as excited about the films as they once were, they may not be that excited about the theme park land either.

There is reason to believe there’s some truth to this. Originally, Disneyland announced that Monsters Inc: Mike & Sully To The Rescue, the major attraction in Hollywood Land, would close in early 2026 as the first step in constructing the new land. That closure has now been delayed into early 2027.

I attended a business update at Disneyland Resort a couple of months ago with then-Disneyland President, now Disney Experiences Chairman Thomas Mazloum. It was there that we were first told that Monsters Inc. wouldn’t be closing as scheduled. At the time, it was suggested this was done as part of a greater effort for Disneyland to appeal to families by having more attractions for young kids, and that the delay wouldn’t slow any future construction plans.

It’s certainly possible that the delay was actually due to the fact that construction was put on hold because Disney Parks was rethinking things. No information about the Avatar land was provided, and maybe that's because things were changing. It all fits.

One Suggested Alternative To Avatar Would Be Much Better

I love Avatar as much as anybody, probably more than most, and I was certainly excited for the potential Avatar attractions coming to Disneyland. The prevailing theory was that the water ride teased in concept art would use the same ride base as the incredibly popular Pirates of the Caribbean attraction at Shanghai Disneyland. That said, I’ve never been a big fan of transforming part of Disney California Adventure into Pandora, because the alien world simply doesn’t match any of the other lands found in my favorite Disney theme park.

Of course, if Avatar doesn’t come to DCA, what could? Former Disney Imagineer Jim Shull spoke to The Wrap and suggested a fairly obvious alternative: Disney’s other property that came out at the end of 2025, but did much better at the global box office. Zootopia. Shull said:

Honestly? I don’t hate this. The Zootopia land at Shanghai Disneyland is incredibly popular, and it has its own E-ticket attraction, which, while not as revolutionary as the Shanghai Pirates attraction, still would be a lot of fun.

The other benefit is that Zootopia would mean transforming the current land into an area that would still be primarily a cityscape, which, since the area borders DCA’s Buena Vista Street, would be a far better transition than Avatar.

It should be reiterated that the idea of replacing Avatar with Zootopia is just one former Imagineer’s theory, though the story does cite a person "familiar with the plans at Disneyland," indicating that operations teams are interested in a Zootopia idea as well. That said, the theory comes from somebody with experience and education in the ways of theme park design. If this is one Imagineer's opinion, it's likely that of others as well.

With D23 set to take place this August, it’s a safe bet that whatever the future is for this theme park land, and the Avatar movie franchise, it will be discussed more then. I'll be there, and I'll be very curious to see where this is all going.

It’s the job of the Avatar filmmakers to make us believe Pandora exists when we watch James Cameron’s films, but wow, is it a grueling process to do so! CinemaBlend just got the chance to go to Lightstorm Entertainment in Manhattan Beach, California earlier this week to learn how those blue aliens get made thanks to the art of performance capture, and we got schooled by Fire And Ash producer Rae Sanchini.

While we were there, we witnessed a live camera demo with VFX supervisor Richard Baneham on the same stage where the likes of Zoë Saldana, Kate Winslet and Sigourney Weaver did their performances with dots on their faces during the production of Fire And Ash. We also sat down with Sanchini, and here’s what the producer had to say about performance capture:

After being at the studio in person, I can finally say I have an understanding of the process myself. But even with that said, I’m mind-blown over the whole thing. As Sanchini spoke, it all starts with the actors coming together to film the scenes on a massive soundstage in Manhattan Beach with performance capture suits on. As she continued to explain:

If you haven’t already, I highly recommend watching the bonus features of the Avatar movies. Fire And Ash just dropped on digital, and if you buy a copy, you’ll also get over three hours of bonus features that cover the making of these movies from every stage. Before we go on with Sanchini’s comments, take a look at this visual slideshow of how it’s done:

While a typical movie shoot involves the filmmakers setting up how every shot will look like and shooting a series of close ups, longshots and so forth with the actors, it’s very different for Avatar. A bunch of cameras film them all at the same time like they are literally living each moment, except they look kind of ridiculous. As Sanchini added:

Jack Champion, a.k.a. Spider, had it even harder because he had to shoot his scenes twice: for motion capture with the rest of the cast and then in live-action in New Zealand since his character is human. Anyways, once the actors have filmed their scenes, James Cameron and the other editors will go through all the takes and start editing the movie into a “performance edit” out of the best moments from the coverage. They’ll send that over to VFX, which creates a “template” of how they look in Pandora. I’ll let Sanchini take it from there with these words:

Once that’s all done, the Avatar movies move to a new phase of post-production at WETA FX back in New Zealand where the movies become what we saw in theaters over the holiday season. Pretty cool, right? You can watch Fire And Ash at home right now, and check out what Oona Chaplin told us about the making of the film as well here on CinemaBlend.

Avatar: Fire and Ash made $1 billion at the global box office, but it seems that a billion dollars doesn’t go quite as far as it used to. Even before the film had opened, James Cameron seemed to be managing expectations, indicating it was a real question when, or even if, the previously announced Avatar 4 and 5 might actually happen.

We still haven’t heard anything about the next two Avatar movies, but some recent comments from producer Rae Sanchini to ScreenRant would seem to indicate that production on those films, as well as the highly-anticipated Fantastic Voyage remake, might not be far off. She said…

Sanchini’s statement could be read to mean that the final two Avatar movies are happening, it's just a question of exactly when. This is certainly the most positive statement about the movies that we’ve heard in recent months. However, until we get an announcement on when production is starting, we can’t know for sure. Still, this has to be seen as a good sign for fans who want to see the Avatar franchise wrap up.

That doesn’t mean we’re going to be seeing the films anytime soon. As Rae Sanchini points out, the reason work would need to get started soon is that it’s a very long process. Avatar 4 is currently on the upcoming Disney movie calendar for a December 2029 release, and Avatar 5 is supposed to hit two years after that. For the movies to hit those dates, things will need to get started soon.

This is because the expectation is that the next two Avatar movies will be filmed at the same time, so the actual shooting schedule will be twice as long as that of your average blockbuster. On top of that, since every single frame of the movies will need post-production digital effects, that process will take a long time.

Of course, Rae Sanchini also mentioned the other James Cameron projects that he has “kicking around,” and Cameron himself has indicated that he may want to do some things other than Avatar in the future. That could be an indication that he’s not looking to jump right into more movies set on Pandora, or it could indicate a hope to get those movies done quickly so he has more time to focus on other things.

Hopefully all this means that news about the last two Avatar movies is coming soon. The title of Avatar 3 was revealed at D23 two years ago. Perhaps this year’s event will reveal the franchise's future.

James Cameron movies are known for their massive scale and cutting-edge technology. The Avatar films (which are streaming with a Disney+ subscription) are certainly no exception in either regard, and fans are still waiting to hear if a fourth movie is actually happening following Fire and Ash's box office performance. But the visionary filmmaker has a vision for where he wants to take the story if another blockbuster is greenlit.

Back in December Cameron told CinemaBlend that he was "artistically ready" to continue the story of Pandora in a fourth Avatar movie. But there's yet to be any confirmation that the director will get to actually shoot the final two chapters of his planned five-movie story. During a press conference at the Saturn Awards (via ScreenRant) the director was asked if he has changes to the narrative in mind after Fire and Ash. He responded with:

While James Cameron reportedly wrote Avatar 4 and 5, Disney hasn't actually ordered those two titles to be produced just yet. Both fans and the filmmaker himself are left waiting and hoping that the House of Mouse allows for the story of Pandora to get its original planned conclusion. Fingers crossed.

After seeing Fire and Ash, some Avatar fans want to see more of Varang in the possible sequels. During the same press conference Cameron mentioned that fan favorite character, who was played to perfection by Oona Chaplin. As he put it:

Varang lead the Ash People in Avatar 3, a Tribe of Na'Vi who turned their back on Eywa following a natural disaster on Pandora. Her relationship with Quaritch brought both drama and comedy to the threequel, and her survival at the end of Fire and Ash has left the door open for her to return.

While James Cameron has his full five-movie story planned, he's still seemingly being influenced by the way fans are responding to the Avatar movies. While Varang will be back if/when a fourth movie is greenlit, he also revealed that reception for The Way of Water led him to put a focus on another character. He said:

Clearly Cameron is paying attention to the comments section, and seeing how moviegoers are responding to each Avatar film. But we'll just have to wait and see if the studio commits to the fourth movie to see how Fire and Ash responses influence the storytelling.

The first two Avatar movies are streaming now on Disney+. It's currently unclear when Fire and Ash will arrive on streaming and home release, but fans are not-so-patiently waiting.

Every Pixar movie for the past three decades has gotten me thinking about the world a little differently, and the studio's latest movie Hoppers is no different. The new film coming up soon on the 2026 movie schedule follows an animal lover named Mabel as she “hops” into the body of a robotic beaver and discovers what it’s like to be in their paws. If you’re thinking it sounds like James Cameron’s Avatar you’d be right, but I was surprised to learn the director had another massive influence.

Hoppers was pitched to Pixar by Daniel Chong, who famously created Cartoon Network’s We Bare Bears, along with being a longtime story artist at the studio. Here’s what he told SFX Magazine on CinemaBlend about the movie’s Avatar similarities:

The movie revolves around a new invention created by Mabel’s biology professor that allows human consciousness to be temporarily transferred into a robotic beaver. In Hoppers’ own trailer, Mabel says “Guys, this is like Avatar!” when the concept is explained to her before the scientists who invented it defensively say “It’s nothing like Avatar!” So, that reference point was intentional. Still, it's not the only nod to another major movie franchise. Hoppers can also trace its roots to one Mr. Tom Cruise.

Here’s what Chong said about what other franchise also inspired the Pixar movie:

See, I definitely wasn’t expecting the filmmaker to drop comparisons to Mission: Impossible, but that only makes me more excited to see what’s coming in the animated comedy. We know that once Mabel goes into the consciousness of the robotic beaver herself, she gets to know her local woodland animal community as they face their habitat being destroyed by a construction company.

Mabel then decides to help the animals stop the impending loss of their habitat, which is fronted by Jon Hamm’s character of Mayor Jerry. That’s the point of the movie where I can see what the director perhaps means by the spy movie elements of Hoppers.

Pixar has had a “rough time” lately making original films that are also big hits, but my fingers are crossed this one has the stuff! The studio is also bringing us Toy Story 5 this year, and is hard at work on Incredibles and Coco sequels. We're set to get another original with Gatto in 2027, and I’m personally excited for it all to come down the pipeline, and not just the tried and true sequels.

Hoppers has an all-star voice cast that even includes Meryl Streep as Insect Queen! Other notable names are Bobby Moynihan, Kathy Najimy, Dave Franco, Sam Richardson, Melissa Villaseñor, Ego Nwodim and Vanessa Bayer (so many great SNL cast members!) You can catch Hoppers in theaters on March 6.

James Cameron doesn’t make small movies. That’s part of his brand. But with the recently released Avatar: Fire and Ash nearing the end of its theatrical run, at $1.4 billion globally, some industry observers are starting to ask: Is Pandora losing altitude? As we head full steam into the third month of the 2026 movie schedule, it's worth looking into whether or not it's time to 'pump the brakes' on more Avatar flicks.

According to a recent Variety report, the third Avatar installment will finish well below the "two metric f---tons" of money the director was aiming for, the staggering $2.9 billion earned by 2009’s Avatar and the $2.3 billion hauled in by 2022’s Avatar: The Way of Water. While $1.4 billion would be a career-defining hit for most filmmakers, it’s a more complicated story here, given that the film stacks up with some of the most expensive movies ever made. Disney reportedly spent around $500 million to produce and market the threequel. As Wedbush Securities analyst Alicia Reese put it bluntly:

Disney, of course, has already committed to two more sequels, slated for 2029 and 2031. But analysts suggest the studio may be rethinking how much it’s willing to spend. As Stephen Galloway, dean of Chapman University’s film school, explained it:

From Terminator 2 to Titanic to every Avatar installment, Cameron has built a career on pushing budgets to historic highs. He’s also built a reputation for turning those risks into box office gold. He remains the only director with four consecutive billion-dollar hits, three of which crossed $2 billion.

But many viewers and critics alike felt that the third film was less essential. The original Avatar films dominated the box office for seven consecutive weekends. Fire and Ash relinquished its top spot after five. Some critics and analysts have also noted that the technological leap forward, once the franchise’s defining feature, didn’t feel as dramatic this time around.

There’s also the release timing. Unlike the 13-year gap between the first two films, Fire and Ash arrived three years after The Way of Water. That shorter window may have reduced the sense of event-level anticipation.

Still, Reese doesn’t think Cameron should be underestimated. The analyst added:

If history tells us anything, it’s that betting against James Cameron rarely works out. That said, with budgets climbing and returns dipping, Disney may be looking more closely at the math this time around. Pandora isn’t in crisis, but the pressure to justify another half-billion-dollar investment is very real.

It’s also important to remember that Avatar: Fire and Ash wasn’t just a box office player. The film earned a 2026 Academy Award nomination for Visual Effects and a nod for Costume Design. As we recently noted, Deborah L. Scott’s work combined traditional design techniques with advanced digital craftsmanship, reinforcing how the franchise continues to redefine large-scale filmmaking. So, even if it brought in less money, the Avatar series still carries prestige, which will undoubtedly be a factor in whether more movies are greenlit.

For now, Avatar: Fire and Ash remains in theaters and is expected to hit VOD sometime in March or April. Whether a fourth film moves forward remains to be seen. In the meantime, fans can revisit the first two chapters with their Disney+ subscription.

The Avatar franchise is, if nothing else, a technical achievement. The things that it does with motion capture technology, digital effects, and theatrical 3D are truly incredible, and unlike anything any other movies are doing today. For that reason, it was pretty much expected that Fire and Ash would be nominated for an Oscar in Visual Effects, which it was. However, the film’s other nomination was a bit more surprising to me, as it was in the field of Costume Design.

The Oscar nominees for Costume Design usually go to people who design and create the physical outfits worn by actors in films. Anyone who has seen a behind-the-scenes shot of an Avatar production knows that what the actors wear on set is usually limited to what looks like a sweat suit and a large camera rig on their faces. All the costumes are created digitally. However, after seeing THR’s conversation with costume designer Deborah L. Scott, it all makes a lot more sense.

While the final product that you see on screen may be entirely digital, it turns out that the process of designing and crafting a costume for Avatar: Fire and Ash isn’t all that different from doing it for a traditional live-action film. Scott explained…

Scott, who previously won an Oscar for designing the costumes for James Cameron’s Titanic, explains that her designs for Avatar start with a pencil and paper, just like they would for any film. Costume samples are also created physically so that they can be accurately scanned by the digital artists at Weta. Once the samples are in the computer, the work continues digitally, and Scott is still involved in fine-tuning the design.

There are some benefits to doing costume design on a digital production. Physical costumes all need to be designed and created before filming begins. Scott reveals that some costume elements for Avatar: Fire and Ash, like those for Oona Chaplin's Varang, weren’t created until later, after she saw the way certain actors carried themselves on set, which gave her inspiration for certain looks.

At the same time, because the costume design for Avatar is both physical and digital, there’s arguably a lot more work going on in the design process to get everything just right. Scott is clear that there is nothing different in costume for Avatar compared to other films, and she’s glad the Oscars recognized that, saying…

It certainly does feel like we’ve entered a new era of costume design. It’s just another place where the Avatar franchise has clearly changed moviemaking forever.

Ever since Avatar: Fire And Ash came out, one big question seems to be lingering between James Cameron and fans: “Will there be more Avatar movies after this?” Now that the third Avatar film has made a majority of its cash at the global box office and is dying down at a projected 1.5 billion worldwide as more 2026 movie releases roll in, it’s time to discuss that very question more in depth.

Fire And Ash had a big worldwide opening the weekend before Christmas with a $345 million debut, but it’s been made clear across its past month and a half in cineplexes that the sequel’s box office success has been cast in the shadows of the first two films. Let’s get into the specifics and what it could mean for the planned follow-up films.

How Is Avatar: Fire And Ash Doing At The Box Office?

Following Fire And Ash’s seventh weekend at the box office, the movie has made around $1.42 billion worldwide against a production budget of over $400 million. That makes Avatar 3 the No. 3 highest-grossing movie of last year, below China’s monster $2.26 billion hit Ne Zha 2 and Disney’s Zootopia 2 (which made $1.78 billion globally), per Box Office Mojo. It made the Avatar movies the biggest trilogy of all time, and its star Zoe Saldaña the highest-grossing actor of all time – dethroning Scarlett Johansson.

Clearly, the numbers show the Avatar movies can still inspire a lot of audiences to buy movie tickets, but if you look at what its predecessors did around the same time, there’s also a clear decline in popularity happening, too. At day 45 at the box office, Fire And Ash was at $386.7 million domestically total, whereas the original had grossed $595.8 million, and the 2022 sequel had surpassed it at $620.8 (via The Numbers).

The Way of Water certainly had a leg up, given it was the first Avatar movie in thirteen years, and Fire and Ash came out just three years after the first sequel. It also doesn’t help matters that the latest installment was mixed among critics, with our own Fire And Ash review giving the movie a respectable, but not amazing, 3.5 out of 5. Cameron couldn’t pull off Avatar growing with each of its movies, and there has to be some concern over whether a fourth movie would flop or significantly lose money going forward.

What James Cameron Has Said Needs To Happen To Make More Sequels

For the time being, Avatar 4 technically has a release date for December 21, 2029, along with Avatar 5 dated for December 19, 2031. Cameron has previously confirmed that he has written both scripts and has even filmed some of Avatar 4, but during Fire And Ash’s press tour, James Cameron has consistently emphasized a big “if” when talking about Avatar 4 and 5. Here’s what he said about how much it needs to make for him to make another one:

The results don’t exactly amount to those expectations, even though the filmmaker didn’t give us a specific dollar amount. If Fire And Ash’s performance doesn’t prove worthy, Cameron has said he’ll either write a book, hold a press conference, or put out a press release about what was going to happen in the planned next two movies he was working on. Cameron has also talked about the possibility of waiting “a while until we figure out how to bring costs down” since, for the time being, making an Avatar movie costs a “metric f–kton” to produce.

Why Avatar Might End As A Trilogy

While Fire and Ash’s box office performance shows a decline in interest from audiences over the franchise, it’s worth noting that the Avatar movies are still one of the biggest movie franchises in history. They currently sit at No. 12 (per The Numbers), but what’s impressive about that is it’s the only movie among the top fifteen to be there with just three movies to its name! There’s also the fact that it’s one of Disney’s biggest properties, with the studio having money invested into Avatar at their theme parks.

Surely, Walt Disney Studios must be looking at ways for Avatar to continue right now if they can be made for less than they have before. However, Cameron and his production company do own the rights to the IP (with Disney having distribution rights), so it’s not like the House of Mouse can simply decide to make more of them without his consent, and Cameron isn’t one to cut corners on the production side of things. Plus, Cameron has said he’s OK if Fire And Ash is “the last one” to THR since there’s really “only one [unanswered question] in the story”.

Now, during CinemaBlend’s interview with the legendary filmmaker, he said “artistically” he’s ready to continue the franchise, but he also has a few ideas for smaller movies he’s been working on he might want to do as well, like another Terminator movie, an adaptation of The Last Train from Hiroshima and the fantasy novel The Devils. Each of these films would theoretically cost a lot less than Avatar movies do, and he’d get to fulfill his visions for them without compromise.

To round things up here, it’s looking like it’s more likely that Avatar will remain a trilogy for now than hearing about a greenlight for Avatar 4 and 5 in the next coming weeks, but that’s just an educated guess. We’ll keep you updated here on CinemaBlend as more Avatar news surfaces. Fire And Ash is still playing in theaters, with the other two available to stream on Disney+.

James Cameron is one of the most successful filmmakers of all time. With three of the top five highest-grossing films of all time directed by him, there’s nobody else quite at his level. But it’s taken some hard work, and possibly some hurt feelings, to get there. And Cameron admits to not liking the person he used to be on set.

Cameron recently appeared on In Depth with Graham Bensinger, where he spoke at length about his career. The host asked him about previous comments he had made that amounted to the director not liking the way he tended to act while directing. Cameron admitted there was a time when he had a tendency to be so focused on getting the movie made right, that he took even the slightest hindrance to that personally. He explained…

Film is certainly a collaborative medium, but the director is the one in charge, and it seems Cameron may have taken that a little too much to heart in the past. It sounds like those working with him might run afoul of the director’s temper from time to time, as Cameron had little patience for mistakes on set. Although it did appear to work, considering the best James Cameron movies are among the most successful movies ever made.

However, Cameron says he’s worked hard to change that mentality and thinks he’s now found a good balance. He understands that blaming people doesn’t make the movie better and is more tolerant of mistakes because he knows they can be dealt with. He continued…

The specific case of Kate Winslet is brought up, as the actress famously said some less-than-stellar things about Cameron as a director following Titanic. Cameron takes exception to that specific case, while he doesn’t specifically claim that things didn’t happen as the actress claimed, he doesn’t feel that her comments were entirely descriptive of the experience of making Titanic with him. And Winslet had nothing but good things to say when she worked with him again on Avatar: The Way of Water.

Whatever things used to be like, it seems that James Cameron at least thinks working with him is better now. This is good news for whatever his next movie ends up being, whether it’s the next two Avatar films or something else entirely.

The box office hit that is Avatar: Fire and Ash introduces several new characters to James Cameron’s science fiction franchise, and the one who arguably makes the biggest impression is Varang. As the leader of the Mangkwan clan or “Ash People,” Varang spreads fire and destruction while simultaneously holding on to the trauma that’s befallen her tribe. The character is stunningly portrayed by Oona Chaplin who steals a few scenes. But Chaplin really shines during that tent scene, which left her a bit anxious after she filmed it.

After the well-reviewed Fire and Ash’s release, one particular moment involving Varang and Miles Quaritch went viral. The spicy scene in question happens after Quaritch arrives in Mangkawn territory to suggest they form an alliance. Varang then takes the RDA operative into her tent (or yurt) when she sizes him up by exposing him to a hallucinogen and sensually cuts his body with a knife. That widely discussed moment not only solidifies the pairs’ alliance but also serves as the spark that starts their romantic relationship.

Oona Chaplin is quite passionate about her Avatar character, and that enthusiasm shone through when she appeared on the On Film…With Kevin McCarthy Podcast. During the conversation (which is on YouTube) McCarthy asked Chaplin about the first tim she saw a fully rendered version of her Na’vi alter ego. The actress revealed it was the tent scene and went on to describe what it was like filming it. She also provided insight into why it left her with “a lot of sleepless nights”:

So it would appear Chaplin was anxious over whether she’d actually nailed the scene (which is cool to see in 3D), and I completely understand her feelings. While the tent scene may indeed be flirty and a bit sexy, it also sheds light on Varang’s pain and point and view. Like Chaplin says, this portion of the film is indeed what keeps her character from being a straightforward villain. The Game of Thrones alum then went on to explain how she planned to handle her uncertainty regarding the scene:

Oona Chaplin didn’t anticipate what happened next, though. She went on to recall how her feelings were soothed due to a cool experience she shared with James Cameron (who fought to keep the tent scene fully intact):

I agree that the scene really does work, and Oona Chaplin deserves a lot of credit for the gravitas that she brings. While it’s unknown if James Cameron will get to make Avatar 4 and 5, Chaplin has already voiced her hopes for Varang’s future within the future. Count me among those hoping to see the fiery character return to the big screen sometime down the road. In the meantime, check out Fire and Ash in theaters now, and stream the first two movies with a Disney+ subscription.

New Zealand has become a key location for the film industry ever since Peter Jackson brought it to the world in The Lord of the Rings films. I'd guess that the second biggest franchise to call the nation home has to be Avatar. Director James Cameron also calls the country his home, having lived there since 2020. While Avatar certainly plays its part in that choice, it seems likely the director would live in New Zealand even if the movies never happened.

In a clip from an upcoming episode of the In Depth with Graham Bensinger podcast, James Cameron reveals that his love affair with New Zealand actually started 15 years before the first Avatar film. He made an unscheduled stop there back in 1994, and before he left, he decided he would move there, eventually. Cameron explains…

The first Avatar movie played its part in moving James Cameron closer to that goal. It was two years after the first film that he and his wife, Suzy Amis, bought their farm in New Zealand. They would then begin to split their time between New Zealand and California for the next decade.

Ultimately, it would be the COVID pandemic that would push Cameron to finally pull the trigger on moving full-time to New Zealand. The next two Avatar movies, which would become The Way of Water and Fire and Ash, were in production when the pandemic hit and shut down New Zealand to outsiders, making it difficult for Cameron and his family to get back to their farm, nevermind get production started again. Once the filmmaker was able to get back, the decision was made to stay. Cameron continued…

Having been to New Zealand once myself, I certainly can’t argue that it’s a beautiful country, and I totally understand why somebody would want to live there. Whether Cameron will continue to work in New Zealand, however, is a different question. While Avatar 4 and 5 are still listed as upcoming Disney movies, and the scripts are done, there’s no official news on production, and Cameron himself seemed to be managing expectations that the two movies are not guaranteed.

Last weekend was technically the first of 2026, and it was a cake walk for James Cameron's Avatar: Fire And Ash. With holiday releases still going strong, no new movies arrived in wide release, allowing the sci-fi epic from mid-December to win its third straight box office crown. This weekend, on the other hand, was a bit different, as the Pandora-set feature faced off against both Johannes Roberts' Primate and Ric Roman Waugh's Greenland 2: Migration. Still, however, the results ended up pretty much the same.

While the Top 5 at the domestic box office this weekend got a bit of a shakeup thanks to the new releases, the title sitting at the top has remained consistent, as Avatar 3 continues its journey to become remembered as one of the biggest blockbusters of 2025. You can check out the full Top 10 below and join me after for analysis.

Avatar: Fire And Ash Rules The Box Office Again As It Continues Its Trek Toward $2 Billion Globally

The question of whether or not Avatar: Fire And Ash would successfully make $1 billion at the global box office was answered last Sunday when the blockbuster became the 59th movie in history to pass that benchmark. Whether or not it will be able to join its franchise predecessors in the much more exclusive $2 billion club is a whole other deal that still hasn't resolved – but the last few days have certainly helped the movie climb toward that special goal.

According to The Numbers, Avatar: Fire And Ash added an estimated $21.3 million to its domestic total this past weekend, which marks a healthy 49 percent drop from last weekend's earnings and brings the title's domestic gross to date up to $342.6 million. It's a notable number particularly because it means that the blockbuster has now pushed past Jon M. Chu's Wicked: For Good in the 2025 rankings (notable because the musical is still playing in 1,142 locations in the market and continues to add to its total).

Avatar 3 has now laid claim to a spot among the Top 5 movies of last year in the United States and Canada, as its sits behind only Jared Hess' A Minecraft Movie ($424.1 million), Dean Fleischer-Camp's Lilo & Stitch ($423.8 million), Jared Bush and Byron Howard's Zootopia 2 ($378.8 8 and rising), and James Gunn's Superman ($354.2 million). A Top 3 finish by the time it's done playing in theaters seems very doable.

As for the race toward $2 billion, that $342.6 million combines with the $888 million earned so far in foreign markets to result in a $1.23 billion total for the film worldwide so far. That's enough for it to rank as the 27th biggest movie of all time (not accounting for inflation), as that total puts it ahead of the $1.215 billion earned by Shane Black's Iron Man 3 in 2013.

As indicated by the figures above, the ratio of domestic box office versus foreign box office has always skewed toward the latter for the Avatar movies, and overseas markets will ultimately determine whether or not it will be history's eighth film to earn $2 billion-plus. That being said, it's noteworthy that the new James Cameron feature isn't demonstrating the same kinds of legs as its predecessors in the U.S. and Canada. While it's making plenty of money to justify a future for the series, it's fading much faster than Avatar: The Way Of Water did in 2022/2023.

By the 24th day of its release, the second Avatar blockbuster had made $517.6 million. That's considerably more than where Avatar: Fire And Ash presently sits in the same amount of time. What will that mean as we get deeper into January and eventually cross into February? It's something to keep an eye on.

Primate Scares Up Enough For Second Place, But It May Fizzle Fast

Let's finally talk about some 2026 movies, shall we? While we are still waiting for the first new release from the new year to topple Avatar: Fire And Ash and win a box office crown, it can at least be said that Primate put on a good show this weekend – enough for second place.

An $11.3 million start wouldn't be great for a major blockbuster, but Johannes Roberts' ape-centric creature feature is playing with the ace up its sleeve called "not having a big budget." Per Variety, Primate was made with a $21 million budget, which means that while it's not quite in the black yet on paper, it doesn't have a long road to get there.

Still, there is an open question asking if the movie will have the legs needed to get that limited distance. Primate has gotten a mostly warm response from critics, as professionals have appreciated its B-movie awareness and satisfying gore... but there are signs suggesting that audiences aren't quite as appreciative (a perfect example being the "B-" grade delivered by CinemaScore surveys). Without more positive word of mouth, the film might be staring down the barrel of a rough second weekend.

Greenland 2: Migration Falls Short Of Den Of Thieves Money In Its Opening Weekend

Unfortunately, not able to achieve even a "mixed results" finish like Primate is Greenland 2: Migration, which landed in fifth place in its debut. Movie fans may remember that the title's predecessor was a planned theatrical 2020 release that ended up going to VOD because of the COVID-19 pandemic – and it was ultimately successful enough to inspire a sequel. Unfortunately, box office numbers show that not a lot of people were overly interested in checking out the follow-up on the big screen during its opening weekend.

While Gerard Butler has had success as a January star in the past – with movies like Christian Gudegast's Den Of Thieves series and Jean-François Richet's Plane – his latest has underperformed comparatively. Unlike those past films, Greenland 2 is the first to have failed to reach eight figures, making only $8.5 million domestically in the last three days. Considering that the film reportedly cost $90 million to make (per Deadline), it looks as though it will go down as the first flop of 2026.

How will things change at the box office next week with the arrival of Nia DaCosta's 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple and the wide expansion of Gus Van Sant's Dead Man's Wire? Be sure to head back here to CinemaBlend next Sunday for my next box office column and analysis of the results.

If there’s one filmmaker whose shadow looms larger than Pandora’s floating mountains, it’s James Cameron. The director has personally shepherded the Avatar franchise from its earliest sketches to its current status as one of the most lucrative film series in history. But even the Terminator director has hinted that he may not be behind the camera forever, and if he does step away, there's a horror filmmaker in the wings wanting a shot at the series.

According to ScreenRant, James Wan is openly raising his hand if Cameron ever decides to step away. While speaking to the outlet during press for The Copenhagen Test, Wan revealed that Avatar (which is streaming with a Disney+ subscription) is one of the few mega-franchises he hasn’t touched yet, and he’d be more than happy to change that if the opportunity arose. He said:

The Conjuring Universe architect’s interest comes at a precarious moment in the Avatar franchise. The most recent entry, Fire and Ash, has been in theaters for a short time and is already barreling toward the billion-dollar mark worldwide. That kind of momentum makes the idea of the Abyss filmmaker stepping aside feel unthinkable, yet the director himself has acknowledged it’s not off the table. With Avatar 4 and Avatar 5 scheduled for 2029 and 2031, respectively, Cameron’s been vocal about pursuing other long-gestating projects, including another Terminator film.

If the mind behind True Lies were to pass the torch, Wan makes a lot of sense as he’s one of the most commercially reliable filmmakers working today. His Conjuring universe alone has grossed roughly $2.8 billion worldwide, making it the most impactful horror franchise ever. If you take into account Saw, Insidious, Furious 7, and Aquaman, you’re looking at a director who knows how to balance studio expectations and audience appeal.

Of course, Avatar is a very different beast from the Conjuring series. Cameron has engineered the world, obsessing over underwater performance capture, new camera systems, and filmmaking techniques. Wan seems to recognize that stepping into Pandora would likely be a collaborative effort rather than a clean break. Still, if anyone could handle it, it would probably be the horror hitmaker.

That kind of partnership might be the only way Disney would feel comfortable moving forward without the series creator in the director’s chair.

Cameron bowing out of the director’s chair would be a seismic shift for the franchise. He’s been hands-on at nearly every creative level, with a meticulous approach that has clearly resonated with audiences, as the first two movies earned an extraordinary $2.923 billion and $2.343 billion worldwide.

James Cameron remains attached to Avatar 4 and 5, as of this writing, but knowing there’s a proven hitmaker like James Wan eager to step in gives Disney a reassuring safety net if the series' creator decides to move on to other film projects.

Avatar: Fire and Ash is now playing in theaters. Be sure to check your local listings for showtimes.

As for the other James, the Australian-born scare maestro is set to direct the upcoming horror movie adaptation of The Call of Cthulu, although a release date hasn’t been announced, and it’s uncertain whether the film will land on the 2026 movie calendar.

It’s easy to imagine the filmmaking process of the Avatar movies being very complicated. Not only do all of the actors have to imagine the world of Pandora while waring motion-capture suits, but even actors like Jack Champion had to film both live-action and performance-capture scenes. However, there was still apparently some room for goofing around amid production, as the kid actors launched a swear jar while on set. That alone is funny, but what really cracks me up is the pricing for the specific words, including F-bombs.

The 2025 movie release Avatar: Fire and Ash may be PG-13, but Trinity Bliss told THR the set i apparently R-rated when it came to language. She told a funny story about how while filming years ago, she and Jack Champion (who play Sully family members of “Tuk” and Spider, respectively) decided to have some fun and create a swear jar for each on-set curse word:

Well, hey, it was for a good cause! Now, I’m wondering how much money they were able to rack up. If parents have swear jars in their household to teach kids not to curse, I find it hilarious that the kids themselves are enacting this on the adults. Ultimately, it's a good lesson that salty language can literally cost you when you're dishing it out around kids.

You may have heard the expression “put a quarter in the swear jar.” When Trinity Bliss and Jack Champion were running the show, the young actress got real about how cursing cost Sam Worthington and James Cameron a lot more than that. While sharing Cameron and Worthington's responses, Bliss also revealed exactly how much some of those words cost to say, and wow:

Those are pretty expensive rations, if I do say so myself. That would definitely teach me to clean up my language. But at least Worthington was honest about how much dough he'd be spending on future curse words. And I'd like to think Cameron would relish the how his cursing helped young Trinity Bliss nail her next audition, given she learned such foul language from him.

While the Avatar franchise's younger actors must have had a lot of fun with their swear jar, you’ve got to give them credit for the many challenges they faced on set. As the simultaneous filming of Way of Water and Fire and Ash helped further along the franchise releases, Bliss told THR that three years of filming meant the child actors’ heights were outgrowing their characters. They also had to deal with intense action sequences like being “pushed back” by big fans.

Considering the youths spent so many years on set, their co-star, Sigourney Weaver, joked about eventually “looking up” to the them as opposed to “down," particularly when it came to Jack Champion. With the grueling filming challenges these kids had to deal with, I look up to them, too, for pushing through and succeeding.

All that aside, I love that there was some humor on the the Fire and Ash set and that the kids managed to keep the adults in line in some form with the swear jar. Of course, should the stars get to reunite to make the final two movies, I wouldn't be surprised if Trinity Bliss and Jack Champion find themselves cursing a bit more now that they're older and have to pay up a bit.

Don’t miss out on Avatar: Fire and Ash, which is now playing in theaters nationwide. The first two films are also streamable with a Disney+ subscription.

While a strong majority of modern movies tend to fizzle out at the box office following hyped opening weekends, James Cameron's Avatar series finds success in the long game. There is, of course, initial excitement generated when the titles first arrive, but the way the titles become some of the biggest hits of all time is because they keep bringing audiences in week after week. It worked for Avatar, it worked for Avatar: The Way Of Water, and we're now seeing it happen for Avatar: Fire And Ash.

The science-fiction blockbuster had a few films to compete with in its second Friday-to-Sunday run in theaters, including Tom Gormican's Anaconda arriving and Josh Safdie's Marty Supreme going from limited release to wide release, but Cameron's latest work managed to crush them all with a stellar weekend-to-weekend drop in ticket sales from its debut. Check out the full Top 10 below and join me after for analysis.

After A Modest Opening Weekend, Avatar: Fire And Ash Remains A Dominant Box Office Force

Last weekend, the opening weekend numbers for Avatar: Fire And Ash were a touch tainted. While the title managed to easily win the weekend against a number of other new releases, ticket sales dropped off significantly from the 2022 performance of The Way Of Water, and there was question about whether or not the 2025 title would be able to showcase the same kind of long legs at the box office that made its predecessors two of the biggest hits of all time.

Looking at what the newly released sequel was able to do over the last three days, it would appear that all concerns have been dispelled.

In the wake of the Christmas holiday on Thursday, audiences in the United States and Canada got hungry for a return trip to Pandora, and the result is another box office crown. According to The Numbers, Avatar: Fire And Ash earned another $64 million over the last three days, which represents a miniscule 28 percent difference from the $89.2 million that it made in its debut. In 10 days, the film has successfully crossed $200 million domestically, and is now sitting at $217.7 million earned in the market. That means it is already the fifteenth highest grossing 2025 title in the region, having now earned more than Zach Cregger's Weapons ($151.6 million).

Pace-wise, this means that Avatar 3 has continued to outpace the original Avatar from 2009. By its tenth day in theaters, Avatar was sitting at $212.7 million earned.

As I noted in last week's box office column, however, while any money made by Avatar: Fire And Ash domestically is great, the franchise is truly a powerhouse overseas, and it continues to wow audiences abroad. That aforementioned $217.7 million made in the United States and Canada presently only represents 28.6 percent of what the blockbuster has made worldwide: $760.4 million.

In the last week, the film has managed to hop over some of the biggest titles of 2025 in the worldwide box office rankings, including James Gunn's Superman ($616.8 million), Joseph Kosinski's F1 ($630.6 million) and Dean Deblois' live-action remake of How To Train Your Dragon ($636.3 million). Avatar 3 is now the seventh highest grossing movie of the year sitting behind Haruo Sotozaki's Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle, but it is expected to continue to climb higher and higher until it joins the other billion dollar titles of the year: Jiaozi's Ne Zha 2, Jared Bush & Byron Howard's Zootopia 2, and Dean Fleischer-Camp's Lilo & Stitch.

Because studios tend to not deliver their biggest titles to theaters in January, the expectation is that Avatar: Fire And Ash will continue to dominate through the early weeks of the 2026 movie release calendar. But will it ultimately be able to reach the $2 billion mark of its predecessors? Time will tell, and it's a development I'll be keeping a close eye on for at least the next month.

Zootopia 2 Gets A Nice Boost From The Holidays, Returns To Second Place

In addition to Avatar: Fire And Ash, last weekend saw a number of other new titles arrive in wide release domestically – including Brent Dawes and Phil Cunningham's David, Paul Feig's The Housemaid and Derek Drymon's The SpongeBob Movie: Search For Squarepants. The draw of all those titles managed to push Zootopia 2 from first place to fifth place... but much like how the Walt Disney Animation Studios release managed to rebound after losing its box office crown to Emma Tammi's Five Nights At Freddy's 2, the animated adventure has proven to be very resurgent.

Zootopia 2 made $14.8 million last weekend, and in the last three days it played in 170 fewer locations, and yet, its ticket sales saw a 35 percent boost. The film made added another $20 million to its coffers in the U.S. and Canada since Friday, which brings its total in the market up to $321.4 million. It has now surpassed the earnings of Ryan Coogler's Sinners and is the sixth biggest domestic title of 2025, and only about $20 million separates it from Jon M. Chu's Wicked: For Good to take over fifth place.

Anaconda Barely Places In The Top 5 Despite The Star Power Of Jack Black And Paul Rudd

There are a number of winners to be pointed at in the box office Top 10: in addition to everything highlighted above, The Housemaid only saw its ticket sales drop 19 percent weekend-to-weekend, and a $17.5 million take for Marty Supreme in its first week of wide release is a solid haul. Not quite fitting into that categorization, however, is the new meta comedy Anaconda. The movie features some great headliners in Jack Black and Paul Rudd, but it had to settle for fifth place in its big screen debut, and it only made $14.6 million.

It's not a great result for a film with a reported budget of $45 million (per Variety), and in addition to getting a rough response from critics, surveys returned to CinemaScore resulted in a middling "B" grade – suggesting that folks aren't going to rush out and tell their friends that it's a must-see feature. During this time of the year, it may still find an audience and grow some legs, but it's a tough start.

This brings me to the end of box office reporting in 2025... but I'll be back next Sunday to kick off 2026 with a fresh column continuing to follow the big screen journeys of all the aforementioned titles and more. Be sure to join me back here on CinemaBlend then!

Spoilers for Avatar: Fire and Ash lie ahead.

James Cameron’s Avatar franchise is well regarded for delivering over-the-top action sequences and stunning visual effects. All of that aside, the films also showcase a bit of romance, mostly from Jake and Neytiri. However, those two aren’t the only power couple in the franchise’s latest installment, Fire and Ash, as Col. Miles Quaritch hooks up with a witchy Na’vi named Varang, and their romantic tension is very palpable in one scene involving a tent. Now, Cameron is opening up about crafting that scene and how it almost changed.

In his continued efforts to bring in Jake Sully for the RDA, Quartich forms an alliance with the Mangkwan tribe, led by Varang (played by franchise newcomer Oona Chaplin). He even arms her tribe with weapons Before that, though, Varang feels out Quaritch – physically and literally – while exposing him to a hallucinogen and cutting him with a knife. Since Fire and Ash’s release amid the 2025 movie schedule, the scene has gone viral, and Cameron has a take on why it’s so interesting to watch:

Honestly, it is hard to look away from the spicy scene (especially if you’re watching the Avatar threequel in IMAX 3D). What’s interesting, though, is that James Cameron didn’t initially realize the full breadth of this segment of the film. He went on to explain to THR is that he initially believed the ball was in Varang’s court during that meeting, until the Oscar-winning filmmaker realized something later on:

Cameron penned the screenplay alongside fellow Avatar veterans Amanda Silver and Rick Jaffa. As the Titanic helmer mentioned, he was pleased with how Quaritch and Varang’s sensual scene was written on the page. However, it was nearly changed in a big way when the editors sought to essentially cut it in half. That led Cameron to issue the following declaration:

And that was that. It was probably best that the scene remained intact, and I don’t just base that on the buzz it’s now receiving. That’s also because it provides more insight into who Varang is as a character. She’s arguably become a breakout character from the film, and fans are loving her. All the while, Oona Chaplin is hopeful about continuing her character’s journey in subsequent installments. Check out a portion of the tent scene below:

There’s still a question as to whether those final two Avatar movies will actually happen. While James Cameron told CinemaBlend he’s ready to make the fourth and fifth installments, he’s waiting to see how Fire and Ash fares at the box office before committing to the films. So fans will just have to wait and see what lies ahead for Varang as well as Quaritch (whose fate was left somewhat ambiguous). And, if more films happen, I also have to wonder if Cameron has more sensual scenes in mind for the characters.

For now, Avatar: Fire and Ash is now playing in theaters, while the franchise’s first two installments are streamable with a Disney+ subscription.

Spoilers ahead for Avatar: Fire and Ash.

James Cameron movies are known for their cutting-edge technology, especially the way motion capture and visual effects were used in the Avatar films (which are streaming with a Disney+ subscription). The threequel Fire and Ash won at the box office, and introduced fans to a new type of Nai'vi: the Mangkwan aka Ash People. Actress Oona Chaplin led this group as the villainous Varang, and recently teased where she thinks her story could continue in future sequels.

Critical response for Avatar: Fire and Ash has been mixed, but most critics are agreed at that Chaplin's Varang was a real high point of the third film. Avatar 3's ending saw a big death scene, but not for Chaplin's character. While speaking with Gold Derby about what comes next for Varang, the actress offered:

It was fascinating to learn about the Ash People, who became violent and rage-fueled after Eywa failed to save them from from a volcano that burned down their village. They were given weapons by Quaritch which made them even more terrifying, but still lost the movie's final battle. Will Varang be even more radicalized moving forward, or will she take away a different lesson from this loss?

Later in the same interview, Chaplin herself questioned what might be coming next if/when she returns to Pandora for Avatar 4. She mused about how Varang might have reacted to Quaritch's presumed death, saying:

Quaritch and Varang's relationship was one of the most viral part of Fire and Ash, moving the story forward while also providing plenty of comedic beats. But they've been separated, and it's unclear if she will continue the mission they started or move on. We'll just have to wait and see if the final two Avatar movies are actually green lit and produced.

While the Avatar movies were originally announced to be a five-film series, James Cameron put doubt on if we'll actually get the final two installments. There are certainly more narrative threads to pull from, but it'll seemingly depend on how Fire and Ash does at the box office. In that interview, Oona Chaplin spoke more about where she thinks Varang's story could go, saying:

This hatred, as well as the way she was able to use her Na'vi queue as a weapon, is a big reason why Varang was such a terrifying force throughout Fire and Ash's runtime. But she was able to survive the final battle, and her story could seemingly go anywhere in a fourth movie. That is, assuming the studio actually green lights another chapter in James Cameron's epic saga.

Avatar: Fire and Ash is in theaters now as part of the 2025 movie release list, and the first two movies are streaming on Disney+. Hopefully we get news one way or another about the franchise's future soon.

Light spoilers for Avatar: Fire and Ash lie ahead.

James Cameron’s Avatar: Fire and Ash, has finally debuted amid the 2025 movie schedule. The third installment in the saga of Pandora and its Na'vi inhabitants not only picks up after the ending of 2022’s The Way of Water, but it also deepens the mythology in a number of ways. As a result, some of the characters evolve due to the experiences they have before this threequel and during it. There was, however, one aspect of protagonist Jake Sully’s past, I really wanted to come into play in this latest movie.

A Key Relationship For Jake Would’ve Been Perfect To Highlight In Fire And Ash

Something Cameron really wanted to tackle with this third Avatar film was the notion of how characters deal with grief, and that’s something the Sully family grapples with at the onset. During Way of Water’s third act, Jake and Neytiri’s oldest son, Neteyam, is killed. At the start of this latest movie, the entire family is still mourning, with Jake and Neytiri becoming emotionally distant from each other. Their other son, Lo’ak, who feels responsible for his brother’s death, is also ignored by Jake.

Considering that much of this story is about Jake and Lo’ak finding some common ground, I’m very surprised Jake’s brother, Tommy, doesn’t come up at all in the film. “Tommy,” for those who may not remember, was Jake’s identical twin brother, who was a scientist originally recruited by the Resources Development Administration (RDA) to take part in the Avatar program and was extensively trained to participate. However, Tommy was killed by a robber before reporting, leading to Jake being tapped to succeed him.

When I finished my first theater screening of The Way of Water a few years back, I was convinced that Neteyam’s passing would lay the groundwork for the Tommy tragedy to come back around. Sure, the specific circumstances regarding Tommy and Neteyam’s deaths are very different, but those developments still could’ve served as a way for Jake and Lo’ak to connect. After all, the father and son now have something in common: they both know what it’s like to lose brothers. And it seemed very logical to bring that parallel into Fire and Ash.

I’d Like To See This Part Of Jake’s Past Expanded Upon If Other Films Are Made

A few additional details about Tom Sully have been shared in other forms of media, mostly notably the 2017 comic book Avatar: Brothers. However, it’d be cool to see a Tommy-related plot thread come into play in another installment. Even if Jake never discusses his brother’s death with Lo’ak or any other members of the family on camera, it could always come back around in other ways. Who knows, maybe Tommy’s death wasn’t a random act of violence, and it ties into something bigger.

Of course, regardless of whether Jake’s brother is mentioned again, it’s still unclear as to whether this franchise will continue. James Cameron is ready to make his hoped-for fourth and fifth movies, though he’s also aware that blockbusters are expensive to produce and wants to make these movies in a profitable way. And, following Fire and Ash’s solid opening weekend, it remains to be seen if the film earns enough money worldwide to justify Disney making two more installments.

We’ll have to wait and see how everything shakes out for the Avatar threequel from a box-office perspective. Until the public receives confirmation that the film series is ending, though, I’ll keep theorizing on the chances of Jake’s relationship with his brother coming back into play. While I do that, see Fire and Ash in theaters now and stream the first two movies with a Disney+ subscription.

Spoilers ahead for Avatar: Fire and Ash.

James Cameron movies are known for their epic scale, and for using cutting-edge technology to achieve his vision. That can certainly be said for the Avatar movies (streaming with a Disney+ subscription), which use motion capture performances, extensive visual effects, as well as the use of 3-D. The original Avatar became the highest grossing movie of all time, largely thanks to its stunning visual spectacle that would go on to inspire theme parks, video games, and (of course) Cameron's sequels. Fire and Ash is officially in theaters, but I found that it was missing some of the wonder of its predecessors.

Critical response for Fire and Ash has been mixed, and now moviegoing audiences are finally able to head to theaters and form their own opinions. In CinemaBlend's Avatar 3 review, I praised the movie's emotional impact, but thought that some of the magic of the franchise was lost in favor of its larger narrative.

I Missed The Avatar Magic In Fire And Ash

I can remember distinctly how unreal it was to watch the first Avatar movie, which introduced audiences to the stunning bioluminescence of Pandora. I went back to see it in theaters more than once, and then was left waiting over a decade for The Way of Water to arrive. Luckily, the wait was worth it, because the second movie brought us deeper into the fictional planet, largely thanks to the introduction of the Metkayina aka the Water People.

We watched as the Sully family learned to free dive, and connect with water creatures like the Tsurak and giant Tulkun. All of this new material helped bring back those same feelings of awe as the first movie, while also deepening the larger plot of James Cameron's planned five-film story. Unfortunately, I thought there was way less whimsy and newness to Fire and Ash, even though overall I still really enjoyed the movie as a whole.

While Avatar 3 introduced us to the chilling Mangkwan aka the Ash People, they didn't offer new areas of Pandora to explore. But the beginning of the movie featured the Tlalim aka the Windtraders, which was definitely a standout, magical moment of the movie. Unfortunately, we only soared to the sky with the giant airships for a few minutes before the Ash People attacked, and we were once again back home with the Metkayina.

I understand why there was less magic and wonder this time around, Fire and Ash takes place directly after The Way of Water's ending, and is truly a continuation of that story. We get tons of huge emotional payoffs for characters like Spider and Kiri, but they unfortunately came at the price of exploration. That being said, I remain invested in this franchise and deeply hope we get the final two chapters.

Avatar: Fire and Ash is in theaters now as part of the 2025 movie release list, and the previous two installments are streaming over on Disney+.

The following contains a minor spoiler for Avatar: Fire and Ash.

Avatar: Fire and Ash is getting solid, if not stellar, critical reception, and its opening weekend box office has been rock solid, albeit quite up to the level of the previous entries. While some of the movie’s set pieces may not be achieving the same degree of wonder the franchise once did, one place where it has to be said Avatar 3 does move forward is in the character drama, including the relationship between Spider and Kiri.

We see a romance begin to bloom in Avatar: Fire and Ash between the Na’vi Kiri, played by Sigourney Weaver, and the human Spider, played by Jack Champion. In the story, both characters are teenagers, so the relationship makes sense. Of course, in reality, Sigourney Weaver is…not a teenager. Speaking with THR, the actress explains how the scene, which has Kiri kiss Spider for the first time, came together behind the scenes, saying…

While Sigourney Weaver says there’s “no room” for consideration of the ages of the two actors in that moment, I’m not sure I’d go that far. One of the few moments that took me out of the film while watching Avatar: Fire and Ash was this moment because my brain absolutely considered their ages in that moment. I wasn’t exactly sure how old Jack Champion was in that scene, but I wondered if what I was seeing was exactly what it appeared to be because of that age difference.

Having said all that, the scene absolutely does work, because while you may be aware consciously of that age difference, the scene still feels real. It’s a testament to the motion capture work that most of the time, you never think of Kiri as anything other than a teenager.

So the two didn’t actually kiss while filming, which is certainly the right choice under the circumstances. Weaver clarifies that this was perhaps the only scene in the movie where she is not acting opposite the other actors in the film. Because of the movie’s heavy use of CGI and motion capture, there are always questions about just how much is “real.”

Of course, what’s ultimately important about what’s “real” is that the emotional stakes of the moment are properly conveyed, and Sigourney Weaver and Jack Champion absolutely achieve that goal. Avatar: Fire and Ash is in theaters now.

Avatar is a strange film franchise. It’s one that has, in its first two movies, made two of the highest-grossing movies ever made, and yet, it has been accused of having no cultural impact whatsoever. While James Cameron has been trying to manage expectations on Avatar: Fire and Ash, the movie is clearly going to make some box office bank, once again showing that people are interested in these movies.

The idea that Avatar was this franchise that everybody had forgotten about never made sense to me. Maybe that’s because, as a theme park journalist, it has been part of my life for years. Since 2017, years before even The Way of Water was released, Pandora: The World of Avatar has been part of Walt Disney World. And now, part of Disney World has become the best part of Fire and Ash.

James Cameron Has Been Teasing Fire And Ash’s Windtraders For Years

Disney bought the theme park rights to the Avatar franchise way back in 2011, two years after the first film became the highest-grossing movie ever made. Construction began on a theme park land at Disney’s Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World back in 2014, and a little over three years later, the land opened to much fanfare.

It primarily focused on the original movie, including a ride where you floated down a Na’vi river and one where you rode on the back of a banshee. However, even back then, it was clear that James Cameron was thinking about the future of his alien world, as elements of future films became part of the land at the beginning.

The end of Avatar: Flight of Passage, the banshee ride attraction, saw a massive whale-like creature jumping from the water. It was an animal we would come to know in Avatar: The Way of Water as a Tulkun. But there was also a reference in Fire and Ash that’s been there the whole time. The gift shop in the Avatar land has been called Windtraders since day one, and now we finally know what that means.

The Windtraders Were The Highlight Of The New Avatar, And Could Have Been So Much More

As a theme park fan, I was excited to see the Windtraders come to life in Fire and Ash. It was revealed long before the movie’s release that the characters would make an appearance. The only thing about them that I found disappointing was that they weren’t in the movie nearly enough.

Of the two new tribes of Na’vi that the film introduced, I found the Windtraders far more interesting. Their method of transportation, on massive freight carriers strapped to flying animals, was the coolest thing to look at in 3D in the whole movie. The people themselves, a tribe focused on commerce, and thus trying to stay out of the conflict, also had far more potential for drama than the more traditional villains.

The action sequence involving the Windtraders, which sees a battle in the air when the Ash People attack, is also the highlight of the movie as far as the action goes. The finale battle is bigger, but it’s largely set pieces we saw in the last movie. This fight felt fresh, new, and different in ways most of the rest of the movie simply didn’t.

Needless to say, when that battle is over and the Windtraders disappear from the story, it was quite disappointing. In the end, the characters only seem to exist as a way to transport Jake Sully and his family to the place where they come in conflict with Varang and her Ash People. Once that happens, their utility as characters is done. It would have been nice to see them return at the end to fight the Ash People in retribution for the earlier slaughter. If nothing else, it would have added a new element to the fight.

James Cameron seems to be hedging his bets and sounds far less than certain that Avatar 4 and 5 will actually happen. If they do, I certainly hope we see more of the Windtraders. There’s an opportunity there that I wish Fire and Ash had taken advantage of.

James Cameron and Sam Worthington have a very special Hollywood relationship. After all, they are respectively the director and star of one of the industry’s biggest franchises, and given the level of visual effects involved in the making of the Avatar films, it’s a bond that requires a lot of trust. The two men have worked very closely for decades now (including the years it took to develop the series’ seminal blockbuster)… and I love that when they reflect on their collaboration, one key moment that sticks out in mind is a time on set when Worthington puked into his head rig camera.

In the run-up to the release of Avatar: Fire And Ash, Cameron and Worthington paired up for a post-screening conversation with Deadline, and it was during a discussion of “peak actor-director experience ”that the vomit-centric memory emerged. The actor struggled initially to pick out a single incident to particularly highlight (estimating that they’ve spent a cumulative total of seven or eight years working together in the 20 years they’ve known each other), but the director teed him up:

Seemingly pivoting into story-mode, Sam Worthington explained that when an actor works with James Cameron, the “truth is in the details.” What that evidently means is that if there is a scene where a character tastes something gross, the best way to go about capturing that moment is to have the actor taste something gross.

Without offering specific details regarding the “when” or saying which Avatar movie it was for, Worthington and Cameron explained what happened:

• Sam Worthington: I think the scene involved me having to drink something that was described as disgusting. So I said to Jim, ‘Well, you got to just give me something disgusting.’ I think he mixed a concoction of fish oil?
• James Cameron: Yeah, no, we went and got some Vietnamese fish sauce. Like, ‘All right, this is going to set him back.’

The puzzle of how to best shoot a scene where Jake Sully drinks something nasty was solved… but it turns out that the solution worked a bit too well. Sam Worthington most certainly was grossed out when he took a swig of Vietnamese fish sauce, but what James Cameron didn’t account for was the possibility that what went in would almost instantly come back out. The actor added,

James Cameron and Sam Worthington don’t look back on this moment in the making of the Avatar franchise as being a “classy” moment, but as far as representing the work ethic on set and figuring out ways to get things done as best as possible, it’s clearly a highlight for the duo.

Avatar: Fire And Ash is now playing in theaters everywhere (having dominated at the box office this weekend), and you’ll find plenty to read about it in the weeks to come here on CinemaBlend.

The Avatar franchise is less than 20 years old, and yet, the standards for the films at the box office are very different than for other releases. It's the inevitable result of the first movies in a series becoming two of the biggest worldwide box office successes in history. When that happens, expectations for future releases changes, as there is anticipation that all subsequent releases will earn similar superlatives. It's the biggest question mark surrounding James Cameron's Avatar: Fire And Ash, and its run on the big screen kicked off this weekend, and it will be fascinating to see what kind of legs it has.

Analyzing the release of Avatar 3 isn't the only subject to cover in this week's box office report, however, as a significant number of new releases dropped in theaters on Friday, and they made interesting competition for the blockbuster science-fiction epic – including Paul Feig's The Housemaid and Derek Drymon's The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants. Check out the full Top 10 below and join me after for analysis.

Avatar: Fire And Ash Fails To Make A Domestic Splash As Big As The Way Of Water, But Money Is Rolling In Worldwide

When James Cameron's Avatar: The Way Of Water arrived in theaters in 2022, it was a special event. The sequel was more than a decade removed from its predecessor, and that time allowed hype to build and build and build – ultimately resulting in the film make $2.3 billion at the global box office (following the $2.9 billion success of the 2009 movie). This weekend, we learned the difference between 13 years of anticipation versus three.

While Avatar: The Way Of Water had what was the fifth biggest opening weekend of 2022 when it made $134.1 million in its first three days of release, Avatar: Fire And Ash had what will go down as the ninth biggest blockbuster debut of 2025 (per The Numbers), having made $88 million domestically since arriving in cinemas on Friday. That's more than what Dean DeBlois' live-action remake of How To Train Your Dragon made when it premiered during the summer ($84.6 million), but should the early numbers hold firm it's a smaller splash than what we saw for Julius Onah's Captain America: Brave New World in February ($88.8 million) and Gareth Edwards' Jurassic World Rebirth in July ($92 million).

The domestic numbers aren't all that impressive when compared to the performance of The Way Of Water, but one must not forget where the vast majority of box office numbers come from with Avatar films: overseas. There is no questioning that both Avatar and its first sequel were massive hits in the United States and Canada (respectively earning $785.2 million and $688.8 million during their theatrical runs in the region), but those figures in both cases represent less than 30 percent of what the two movies made globally.

Fire And Ash is already seeing a similar ratio play out in its opening weekend box office earnings. The $88 million it has brought it thus far domestically represents just a little over a quarter of the ticket sales from around the world. Foreign markets have seen the blockbuster make $257 million, which puts its present worldwide earnings up to $345 million.

Of course, there's a massive catch when it comes to the box office results for the Avatar features: they are ridiculously expensive movies to make. Variety reports that the 2025 title singly cost over $400 million, and that doesn't including marketing and publicity expenses. There is an expectation that each title in the canon is going to be a global phenomenon, and money is spent with that in mind. Outside of the Avengers movies, no other franchises exist on that scale today.

The Avatar movies have a secret weapon, though, and it's called "January." When it comes to the release schedule of any given year, the film industry tends to spend the first month in a kind of semi-active hibernation, and that has meant that there aren't any major titles to complete with. Fire And Ash may not always be the number one title at the domestic box office in the next five weeks or so, but it will very likely stay in the Top 3, and history suggests that will lead to some impressive final ticket sales numbers by the time it is done with its theatrical run.

Survey results from CinemaScore suggest that Audiences are still very much returning their trips to Pandora, as the new release got an "A" grade to match its predecessors. We'll see if that translates to the legs that will be necessary to ensure a bright future for the planned Avatar 4 in 2029.

David And The SpongeBob Movie: Search For Squarepants Magnifies The Strong Trend For Animation In 2025

It was inevitable that Avatar: Fire And Ash was going to be sitting at the top of the box office, but looking at the domestic results from the second-to-last weekend of 2025, one notes that the reinforce a trend we've seen all year: animated movies are doing really well. It's not a story of total domination, as nine out of the year's Top 10 blockbusters were live-action, but The SpongeBob Movie: Search for Squarepants and Brent Dawes and Phil Cunningham's David just a list of solid performers.

In the last three days, the latter, made by Angel Studios, made $22 million (which was good enough for second place), and The SpongeBob Movie: Search for Squarepants made $16 million, landing in fourth. Those are strong starts, but it's possible that they haven't actually peaked yet: with kids out for winter break and limited options on the way in the weeks ahead, these films could join Avatar 3 in demonstrating some staying power.

The Housemaid Is No Match For The Lure Of Pandora, But The Adaptation Has A Strong Debut

That lastly brings us to The Housemaid, which is based on the popular novel authored by Freida McFadden. The film, starring Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney, had to settle for a bronze medal this weekend, falling in between the aforementioned animated titles, as it made a reported $19 million during its debut.

It's a good start for a title that was never going to top the box office in its debut, and the critical response to The Housemaid has been positive enough to potentially keep audiences curious about it in the weeks to come. It is worth noting that the movie did outperform director Paul Feig's first thriller A Simple Favor, which made $16 million when it arrived in theaters in September 2018.

As interesting as this weekend's box office results are, next Sunday should offer some even bigger surprises, as everything currently playing will be competing with Tom Gormican's Jack Black-Paul Rudd comedy Anaconda, Craig Brewer's musical biopic Song Sung Blue, and the wide expansion of Josh Safdie's sports drama Marty Supreme. I'll be back next Sunday with a fresh column exploring the results, and you can start prepping for the year ahead by checking out our 2026 Movie Release Calendar.

As someone who loves spending multiple hours in a dark theater and getting transported to faraway, imaginative places to escape the world, I feel weird saying this: I think the Avatar movies are too long. I know, I know, there are so many great long movies (even James Cameron is prone to make superb epics), but after spending the better part of three-and-a-half hours with Avatar: Fire and Ash, I need to talk this out.

With the latest (and longest) installment of the Avatar franchise now out on the 2025 movie schedule, I think this is a good time as any to bring up my biggest complaint. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Fire and Ash and think it’s a cinematic achievement, but I can only sit in a chair for so long. Hear me out!

I Love A Long Movie As Much As The Next Guy, But Even I Have My Limits

Some of my favorite movies of all time have runtimes that cross the three-hour mark. Whether it’s modern gems like The Brutalist and its much-talked-about intermission or classics like The Godfather Part II and Lawrence of Arabia, I think sometimes filmmakers need all the room they can get to flesh out their stories.

That said, Avatar: Fire and Ash’s extensive 197-minute runtime seems a little much and borderline unnecessary. Knowing how long it was going to be before jumping back into the story of the Na’vi and traveling back to Pandora, I treated my screening like surgery in that I didn’t eat or drink anything the morning of or during the movie. I wasn’t forced to do that, but I thought there was nothing I could afford to miss. Well, about that…

Like 30 To 45 Minutes Of Fire And Ash Could Be Trimmed

As pointed out in CinemaBlend’s Avatar: Fire and Ash review, this is the longest entry in the franchise (Avatar was 162 minutes long, while Avatar: The Way of Water was 195 minutes), and you could feel those minutes adding up. There were multiple times when I kept wondering how much time was left and checked my phone to see that I still had two hours before the credits.

This isn’t to say it’s a bad movie, because it’s not; it’s just that there are a good 30 to 45 minutes that could be cut out, and the movie wouldn’t be any worse. Don’t get me wrong, James Cameron has crafted one of the best sci-fi movies in a long time and an unparalleled cinematic experience, but maybe some of those flying scenes, underwater sequences, and other minor story beats could have been left on the cutting room floor.

Again, I never had a bad time while watching but I can’t lie and say I wasn’t completely exhausted by the time the big finale came around. There was a pattern of a big action sequence followed by a long period of story multiple times throughout the movie, and by the final stretch of the epic, I was beat, both physically and mentally.

If the fourth and fifth Avatar movies end up happening (which I’m almost positive they will), I hope that Cameron makes them somewhat shorter and more streamlined. Not just for the sake of the story, but for the sake of the audience.

Major spoilers for Avatar: Fire and Ash lie ahead.

One of the coolest elements of the Avatar movies has to be all the worldbuilding James Cameron has created to make Pandora feel like a real place. In the latest installment, Fire And Ash audiences get to dive deeper into the fictional planet he’s created throughout the story. One highlight of the critically-acclaimed Fire and Ash is the moment The Great Mother seems to be revealed for the first time, and it has a link to 2001: A Space Odyssey.

As soon as I saw what appeared to be a large purple baby when Kiri finally got to connect with The Great Mother, I knew I had to ask about that scene during CinemaBlend’s interview with James Cameron. When posed with the question of whether the scene was inspired by 2001, Cameron confirmed how the Kubrick film informed his approach to that big moment:

Based on how James Cameron answers the question, there’s more to explore about the Ewya past what happens in Avatar: Fire And Ash. The Ewya is an interconnected biological network that helps regulate the planet’s ecosystem that Kiri seems to have a particularly strong connection to. Cameron also said this:

The more the Avatar movies push forward, the more Cameron gets to explore the fictional world. That includes the ways in which Pandora evolves as a singular entity. It’s certainly a solid reference to take inspiration from one of the best space movies of all time, and, Cameron told me the moment is a window into what questions were left unanswered for future movies.

Hopefully, the director gets a chance to show us what he’s talking about regarding The Great Mother and Kiri’s interesting relationship. The filmmaker told me he's “artistically” ready to work on Avatar 4 and 5, but wants to wait for the movie’s global performance to determine what's next. He also has “a couple of other projects” he’s interested in doing. Additionally, Cameron said the sequel will need to make “two metric fucktons of money" to make a profit.

I wonder if the fact that Spider (a human) is able to tap into the network will change the Ewya or The Great Mother in any way moving forward. At the end of Fire and Ash, Spider certainly had a positive experience there, so I might be wrong about that. However, Cameron’s comments certainly point to more mysteries to uncover, and I'm so curious if we'll get to see more of The Great Mother beyond his 2001-like moment. We'll have to wait and see if another sequel heads to the movie release schedule in the coming months.

Check out Avatar: Fire and Ash in theaters now and stream the first two movies using a Disney+ subscription.

Hollywood loves a good “what-if” story about roles actors almost take. Like how Leonardo DiCaprio almost took the role in Boogie Nights, or how Will Smith passed on the Matrix. However, few stories are bigger than Matt Damon’s long-told tale about nearly starring in Avatar and supposedly walking away from what would’ve been a huge payday. However, James Cameron himself recently challenged key parts of that narrative.

During a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Cameron seemed to want to set the record straight about what he and Matt Damon was really discussed when they talked about him potentially starring in Avatar. Cameron said that Damon was never actually offered the role in the film, so conversations surrounding financial conversations didn’t even start to happen, as he explained:

If this was the case, this is certainly not how Damon remembered everything going down. The Oscar winner previously talked about initial conversations involving a slice of the profits, which would’ve been an insane amount of money considering that Avatar ended up becoming the most profitable movie of all time.

Even if it wasn’t exactly “10 percent” as Matt Damon said, any slice of that box office would’ve been an extreme pay day. However, Cameron seemed set on revealing that Damon would never have gotten that kind of a pay day, even if he had agreed to do the movie:

Even if Cameron is right, and no money was actually talked about, I’m kinda bummed out that the Titanic director felt compelled to “set the record straight.” It’s a great story that's definitely served as a solid piece of Hollywood lore. And, as the saying goes, “never let the truth get in the way of a good story.”

While Cameron essentially ruined what may or may not be Damon’s best dinner party story, he did have a lot of positive things to say about the Good Will Hunting actor. Apparently, Damon turned down Avatar in a very classy way and, based on Cameron's comments, he's very appreciative of how the star handled that. He said:

Well, maybe after James Cameron’s Avatar saga comes to a close, these two will find a way to work together someday. Whether or not Cameron’s version of this story is accurate, or Matt Damon truly was offered the amount of money he thought he was, I'd say everything worked out well.

As John Krasinski once said about the Avatar debacle, Damon is already a huge movie star. Considering Damon's star status, I can't imagine much would have changed if he had a few million more dollars. Damon was actually able to star in a lot of great movies we wouldn’t have gotten to see if the Avatar movies ended up being a conflict, so I think him passing on the project was ultimately for the best.

Fans can see the Matt Damon-less Avatar: Fire and Ash in theaters nationwide. Also, revisit the previous two Avatar films now with a Disney+ subscription. Those who love the Jason Bourne star can see him in his own big Hollywood blockbuster, The Odyssey, which heads to cinemas on July 17 amid the 2026 movie schedule.

Spoiler Warning: The following article contains major spoilers for Avatar: Fire and Ash. If you’ve yet to watch the new sci-fi movie, please return after doing so.

Outside of a deleted scene from the first movie, the Avatar franchise has primarily taken place on the lush moon of Pandora, where the Na’vi, all kinds of imaginative creatures, and unbelievable landscapes can be found. Ever since I first heard years ago that there were plans for the action to move over to Earth later in the franchise, I’ve been in the camp of folks who want nothing of it. Well, that was until I saw Avatar: Fire and Ash.

There’s a sequence in James Cameron’s hotly anticipated 2025 movie that completely changed my mind when it comes to the prospect of Jake Sully going back to Earth before the franchise draws to a close. I’m not talking about the big sea battle, or the latest adventure from an un-killable Quaritch, but instead that eye-popping and action-packed Resources Development Administration (RDA) sequence. Let me explain…

So What Are These Avatar On Earth Rumors?

There have been a lot of rumors, theories, and speculation about the Avatar franchise going over to the land of the humans, and that dreaded RDA, at some point in the future. These have been going around for a few years now, but seem to start with comments made by the late Jon Landau, James Cameron’s longtime producer, creative partner, and friend, when he spoke with Gizmodo ahead of Avatar: The Way of Water’s 2022 release. As Landau put it:

These comments, while teasing a potential terrestrial future for the franchise down the road, didn’t reveal too much about where Avatar 5 (it still doesn’t have a subtitle despite rumors) would go storywise. Yeah, Neytiri going to Earth sounds promising, but not much else was revealed.

The Big RDA Base Sequence In Avatar: Fire & Ash Changed My Mind For One Major Reason

Here’s something to know about it: I love big, dirty, industrial set pieces on the big screen. I mean, some of the best action movies of all time have at least one big sequence in some kind of industrial zone. Hell, a lot of James Cameron’s best films (The Terminator, Aliens, Terminator 2: Judgment Day) have scenes in nitty, gritty, and hot-as-hell factories, bases, boiler rooms, foundries, etc. They look so unbelievably cool, and that, again, is the case for Fire and Ash.

Though the more colorful, fantastical, and otherworldly scenes of the Sully family flying around Pandora on beasts, and merchants in hot air balloons looked incredible (seriously, Cameron is in a league of his own), the big mission to rescue Jake and Spyder after they were captured by the RDA is what I live for.

Throughout the sequence, I kept thinking to myself, “Ok, let’s get this franchise to a polluted Earth on the brink of destruction,” and that feeling just never went away. I mean, just imagine an entire movie (or portion of a movie) where we’re back on a futuristic Earth where everything has gone to hell. It’d be so dirty, so grounded, so hot. Big machines, bigger vehicles, power-loaders, you name it. I want to see it.

I Also Want To See How Humans On Earth React To The Na’vi

The whole “James Cameron building a dirty and lived-in Earth” is the main reason I wouldn’t mind for those Avatar 5 rumors to be true, but it’s not the only aspect of this that has me hyped. For the first time in the franchise, Fire and Ash showed how humans outside of the upper echelon of the RDA think about Jake Sully, the man they call a traitor for living with the Na’vi.

Throughout the extended sequence, the low-level factory grunts, scientists, and general RDA support staff looked at Jake (who was confined to a glass enclosure in the middle of the compound) like they were watching an old-timey freak show. They had this morbid curiosity and fascination with man-turned-Na’vi, and it added another layer to the overall story. To see that expanded, especially with the Na’vi equally freaking out on Earth and being confused by the technologically advanced world, would be something.

Billboards, massive screens, text messages on those nifty see-through phones blasting propaganda from the RDA on a massive scale would create such a frenzied moment that I really think would push the franchise in a new direction.

Remember the Captain America: The First Avenger ending where Steve Rogers discovers he’s in the 21st century while standing in a frenzied Times Square? Well, I imagine it’d be like that times 3,000.

Now I Really Want Avatar 5 (And The Rest Of The Movies) To Happen

Despite the first two movies being two of the biggest box office winners of all time, there seems to be some trepidation when it comes to the planned fourth and fifth Avatar movies. I mean, it’s at the point where Cameron himself is saying Fire and Ash needs to be uber-successful for the later films to be made. Hopefully, all this worry is for nothing, and these movies actually end up happening. I need to see what Cameron’s version of a futuristic Earth looks like. Not only that, but I also want to see where the franchise goes after some major story points were introduced in the most recent release.

I mean, Fire and Ash did receive a Golden Globe nomination for “Cinematic and Box Office Achievement” a little less than two weeks before its debut, so maybe insiders think this is going to be another $2 billion release for the franchise. I guess I’ll just have to be patient and wait and see…

Hopefully, Avatar: Fire and Ash goes on to make a ton of cash at the box office, and the franchise continues at least until we get to see what happens with the Na’vi on Earth.

James Cameron movies are known for featuring cutting-edge technology, and the Avatar films (which are streaming with a Disney+ subscription) are no exception. Moviegoers are once again being brought back to Pandora in Avatar: Fire and Ash, which was filmed at the same time as The Way of Water. And it turns out that one actor had to film all of their scenes in the threequel twice in order to merge motion capture and live-action performances for the blockbuster. My mind is officially blown.

CinemaBlend's Avatar: Fire and Ash review praised its gorgeous visuals, as well as its emotional story... especially what goes down with Jack Champion's Spider. The actor spoke to SlashFilm about his role in the third movie, where he revealed that, because he plays a human character in Pandora, he had to spend years filming his footage twice over. As he put it:

Is anyone else's head spinning? The Avatar movies are very long, so it's not even like Champion only had a few scenes as Spider. So the fact that he had to track his blocking and emotional story over two years and also shoot his coverage two times is pretty wild. And it's impressive that both the actor and Cameron ultimately worked together to make this seamless from the audience's perspective.

Spider is at the heart of Fire and Ash's story, and he goes through some remarkable changes throughout its runtime. So it's fascinating to hear the way the star of Scream VI (which is streaming with a Paramount+ subscription) worked to bring his performance to life. Later in the same interview he went on to speak about the tools he had to help him track his journey, as he put it:

Every time I learn more about how the Avatar movies were shot, it's more remarkable that James Cameron's trilogy became a reality. On top of actors like Kate Winslet filming at the bottom of a pool, there was also the dual performance that Jack Champion had to bring as a result of playing a human character opposite Jake Sully's Na'vi family. But despite what a technical experience it was filming the last two movies simultaneously, the emotional story still came first. As the actor put it:

This just makes me more invested in seeing what James Cameron might bring to the table if/when his final two Avatar movies are produced. Critics were mixed on Fire and Ash, and the threequel is going to have to make a ton of money if the studio is going to move forward with more movies. Personally I'm hoping we get to see how the story concludes, especially after the twits that came from Spider and Kiri.

Avatar: Fire and Ash is in theaters now as part of the 2025 movie release list. Will it break box office records like its predecessor? Only time will tell.

The Sully family is back. Just three years after The Way of Water, the third installment of James Cameron’s Pandora epic, is set to hit the big screen (with very specific instructions from the filmmaker, at that). Avatar: Fire and Ash hits the 2025 movie calendar on December 19, continuing Jake and Neytiri’s story following the events of the previous film. Critics have seen the movie, and they’re split over whether the gorgeous-looking product justifies its runtime and repetition.

This time around, Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldaña’s characters have joined the Metkayina clan, who encounter the “Ash People,” an aggressive Na’vi group led by Oona Chaplin’s Varang. First reactions to screenings saw critics noting some repetition in the narrative, and in CinemaBlend’s review of Avatar: Fire and Ash, Corey Chichizola agrees that there are fewer new aspects to Pandora this time around. The stakes, however, make it feel like more than the middle section of a larger franchise. He rates the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and writes:

Bill Bria of SlashFilm, meanwhile has no notes, giving Avatar: Fire and Ash a perfect 10 out of 10. The critic acknowledges the overlap that some are complaining about but says there are so many new concepts, creatures and cultures that claims of repetitiveness are nitpicking. Bria thinks this offering is the best so far, writing:

Max Scoville of IGN admits to experiencing some déjà vu, with some of the visuals and story beats treading close to those in previous films, but its lack of newness is made up for with the familiarity of the characters and a more-than-satisfying ending. The critic gives it an “Amazing” 9 out of 10 and says:

David Rooney of THR says Fire and Ash’s “been-there, bought-the-T-shirt fatigue” is hard to ignore, especially with a bloated runtime of over three hours. This critic has had “enough with the Modigliani Smurfs already,” writing:

Robbie Collin of The Telegraph also wonders if we need (or even want) more from the Avatar franchise when the third movie had so little to add. Collin lists the repeated scenes, which include another pterodactyl race, a bioluminescent sensory bath and more snorkelling with plesiosaurs. Rating the film just 1 out of 5 stars, the critic says:

The Rotten Tomatoes score of Avatar: Fire and Ash reflects critics’ divide over this third installment, rating it a collective 68% (compared to Avatar’s 81% and its sequel’s 76%). However, by all accounts, the world of Pandora is still one to behold — especially in 3D — so if this is a movie you’ve been looking forward to, you can catch it in theaters starting Friday, December 19.

James Cameron is used to pressure. He’s felt it 12,500 feet below the ocean’s surface, trapped in a submersible near the wreck of the Titanic. He’s felt it pioneering new filmmaking technology, betting entire studios on ideas that sounded unreasonable at the time. And once again, he’s feeling it as the upcoming Avatar: Fire and Ash heads toward its 2025 movie schedule release; Disney pressed for him to cut the film's runtime.

The latest tension centers on runtime and character focus. As Cameron explains, Disney had familiar concerns about the film's length and whether audiences really needed so much time with Colonel Miles Quaritch, the franchise’s long-running antagonist. In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the Academy Award–winning filmmaker framed the pushback as part of a decades-old studio mindset, one he believes no longer reflects how audiences actually engage with movies. He explains:

According to the Terminator franchise creator, Fire and Ash originally ran for almost four hours before being cut to three hours and 15 minutes. Early screenings received a very positive response, with people eager to see it again, although there were still some common complaints, many of which concerned the movie's length. He says he reads all the feedback and takes what matters into account, but he’s pretty strict about keeping the story's depth and the characters intact.

Quaritch, played again by Stephen Lang, isn't just your typical bad guy. He actually serves as an essential thread in the Avatar story, showcasing the darker sides of humanity and our unresolved issues. For Cameron, cutting these parts to make the film shorter would really diminish its emotional and philosophical impact.

The stakes for Fire and Ash are unusually high, even by Avatar standards. Cameron has acknowledged that the film’s performance will determine whether the planned fourth and fifth installments move forward as envisioned. While parts of those sequels have already been shot, their future hinges on whether audiences still show up for a three-hour-plus theatrical experience in a shifting moviegoing landscape.

That uncertainty has also prompted Cameron to reflect on his own future. After spending more than a decade immersed in Pandora, the director says he’s increasingly eager to explore other projects, including a new Terminator script, documentaries, and stories that step outside the Avatar universe. He’s been candid about feeling at a crossroads: whether he wants Fire and Ash to be such a massive success that it locks him back into years of sequels, or just successful enough to give him the freedom to pivot.

Still, the visionary moviemaker isn’t hedging creatively. He remains adamant that spectacle without emotional investment doesn’t last, and that audience engagement matters more than shaving minutes to squeeze in an extra showing. For a filmmaker who built his career on taking risks others warned him against, that philosophy hasn’t changed. If Avatar: Fire and Ash is going to work, James Cameron believes it has to work on its own terms — length, Quaritch, and all.

Avatar: Fire and Ash, the third chapter in the long-running Pandora saga, hits theaters on December 19, 2025. Be sure to check your local listings for showtimes.

Avatar: Fire And Ash is one of the most exciting 2025 movie releases left, chiefly because of the potential it has to become another box office phenomenon. It follows The Way of Water, which became one of the highest -grossing movies ever alongside the first Avatar. When James Cameron made The Way of Water, he also simultaneously made Fire And Ash, so I had to ask the filmmaker how the audience reaction of the first sequel may have affected the upcoming release. Let’s get into how he answered.

Avatar 2 & 3 Were Shot At Once, But What Happened After Way Of Water’s Release?

During CinemaBlend’s conversation with James Cameron for Fire And Ash, I asked the writer/director/producer what might have changed about the third Avatar movie after the second movie came out. In his words:

Now, when James Cameron initially wrote the sequel to Avatar, the story that became The Way of Water and Fire And Ash was actually one very long script until it was decided to split things up into two movies. That being said, both movies were initially shot at the same time over five years ago at this point. But as Cameron told us, he thought of the process of releasing both movies as a “fluid” process. As he also shared:

It’s pretty wild to imagine that both movies were filmed all that time ago, until you look at how the Avatar kids have grown up since and realize it. As Cameron told us, while a lot of it was filmed back with Way of Water, he did call up the actors and do some additional filming following the second movie’s release. Oh, and the movie wasn’t even fully done until about a month ago.

The Changes Made To Fire And Ash After The Way Of Water

That leads us to some changes that should be noted as you watch the movie this weekend , which our Avatar: Fire And Ash review says “sticks the landing” amongst many reactions from early viewers. As Cameron pointed out:

You can look forward to Jake reuniting with his flame-colored flying animal, which Cameron initially had in store for the fourth movie. He also told us about one element that was inspired by audience interest:

Payakan is, of course, the whale-like Tulkun that Lo’ak befriends in Way of Water. After seeing how people reacted to this part of the storyline, he decided to extend the storyline. Cameron also said this:

The audience will certainly play a part in what is next for Avatar as well, given the filmmaker also recently said it’ll need to make “two metric fucktons of money to make a profit.” You can see Avatar: Fire And Ash in theaters starting December 19.

I’m not much of a popcorn guy, but I’ve been weirdly delighted watching the popcorn bucket arms race escalate, with major blockbusters often trying to outdo others with concession stand flexes. We’ve already seen some truly unhinged designs lately, like the $80 Galactus bucket for The Fantastic Four: First Steps and the viral NSFW Dune 2 bucket. Well, the soon-to-be-released Avatar: Fire and Ash is officially entering the chat with a popcorn bucket that comes with quite the hefty price tag.

Both AMC and Regal have unveiled the Avatar: Fire and Ash Banshee Popcorn Bucket, a limited-edition collectible that’s part snack holder and part display piece. Modeled after the luminous mountain banshees from the sci-fi epic, the bucket features a massive wing span and enough detail to make it look like it could take flight mid–movie marathon. The only thing more jaw-dropping than the design might be the price.

The Bucket Looks Cool, But The Price Is Steep

According to Regal’s product information, the bucket is inspired by Pandora’s “mountain banshees,” featuring bright blue coloring and wing details, and is positioned more like a premium collectible than an average plastic tub. It’s also not small: Regal lists it at 85 oz with dimensions of 26 x 9 x 12 inches, plus a hand-wash-only note that basically translates to: “Congrats on your new household item.” Check out a shot of it below.

The listing also notes a purchase limit of three. The part that’ll make some collectors wince is the fine print: final sale, non-refundable, with no returns and no cancellations, and it’s excluded from promotional discounts. In other words, once you commit, you’re bonded for life, like a Na’vi neural queue but with more butter. And the price? Well, it’ll set you back a cool $79.95.

Is $80 steep? Absolutely. But it’s not like the industry hasn’t been nudging buckets into “collector merch” territory lately. We’ve seen plenty of premium releases that aren’t really about practicality. They’re about fandom, shelf presence, and the simple joy of owning something delightfully unnecessary. And hey, a lot of these collectors' buckets have come in at the same price, like the previously mentioned Galactus bucket.

Fans Are Reacting Exactly How You’d Expect

And yeah, the internet has thoughts. Here are some of the best reactions I’ve seen so far, quoted directly:

• @Brad_801: “I want it NOW! 😂”
• @urstrulyzx: “Where will you keep it that big bucket while watching, that will hamper your viewing experience no ?”
• @Grumpy__Bear__: “That'll be $75”
• @GreatestROBever: “That popcorn going to fly away”
• @JohnnyDaMango: “Is it out?”
• @MajesticColt): “Wow that's nice”
• @SoloDoloPyro666: “@LadiiiPyro movie date with this guy? When the avatar movie come out?”
• @DiegoRiani: “🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰”

So yes, the Banshee bucket is expensive. But it’s also the kind of big, display-ready oddity that collectors love, even when they’re grumbling through the checkout. If nothing else, it’s proof that movie merch has officially entered its “designer handbag” era. Regardless of price, it would appear a lot of potential audience members are ready to drop some dough on the collectible.

Avatar: Fire and Ash, one of the most highly anticipated upcoming action movies of the year, hits theaters on December 19th. Until then, you can revisit the previous Avatar films with a Disney+ subscription and decide whether you’re showing up opening weekend as a normal moviegoer… or as the proud owner of a very large, very pricey Banshee-shaped popcorn commitment.

James Cameron is a truly legendary filmmaker, and one of the most prolific visionaries we have with us today. His movies are pretty synonymous with using cutting-edge technology, and nowhere is that more obvious than in the Avatar franchise. The sci-fi property burst into theaters back in 2009, although we had to wait over a decade for its sequel The Way of Water to arrive. Luckily he shot the second and third movies at the same time, which is why moviegoing audiences are being treated to the threequel Fire and Ash this holiday season.

Fire and Ash picks up almost immediately after the events of the second film. But instead of being narrated by Sam Worthington's Jake Sully, instead we're in the POV of his second-born son Lo'ak, played by Britain Dalton. In many ways, this third movie feels like more of a sequel to The Way of Water than a brand new, third chapter of this saga. For casual fans, any necessary exposition is delivered early on to remind them of the events of the first sequel.

The full cast is back for Fire and Ash, chief among them being Worthington and Zoe Saldaña. We also follow Jake and Neytiri's kids, Stephen Lang's Quaritch is in his Na'vi body, and the Water People we were introduced to in the last chapter. The world of Pandora expands in the third movie with the Mangkwan clan a.k.a. the Fire People. This is the first time we've the Na'vi have been in conflict with each other, and newcomer Oona Chaplin gives an instantly iconic performance as the villainous Varang.

Of course, there is also the looming conflict with the RDA, which is unrelenting in its quest to drain Pandora of its natural resources. That storyline brings in various human characters, including Edie Falco's General Ardmore and Giovanni Ribisi's Parker Selfridge. Quaritch pivots between the RDA and the Mangkwan, allowing for a strange alliance to be formed between these two factions.

What results is another epic movie in scope, one that is full of huge character revelations, surprisingly emotional moments, and (of course) beautiful visuals that offer a sense of escapism.

Fire And Ash is a meditation on grief.

Avatar: The Way of Water's ending was a devastating one due to the death of Neteyam. This loss is very much at the heart of he story for the third movie, especially since it picks up to shortly after that death. When the movie opens, Lo'ak describes how grief has affected the Sully family as a whole, in particular Saldaña's Neytiri.

Rather than being the emotional center of the story as she was in the previous two movies, Neytiri is in the throws of grief and is angry at all of humankind for the loss of her son. That includes their adopted son Spider, with the tension in their relationship reaching a boiling point during Fire and Ash.

Despite being in a fantastic world full of giant blue creatures, this very human story allows the third Avatar film to be relatable for those of us on planet Earth. This an emotional entryway for moviegoers to feel invested in the Sullys throughout their wild third adventure on Pandora.

The third Avatar movie has less whimsy and more story.

The Avatar franchise is known for its stunning visuals, which are made all the more palpable when watching the movies in 3D on the big screen. That's certainly still the case in Fire and Ash, but there are far fewer new aspects of Pandora offered this time around. And as a whole, the threequel feels more focused on its larger, character-driven story than the wonder and awe that came with the first two installments.

The 2009 original was introducing us to Pandora, and every creature and bioluminescent setting was new and exciting. When The Way of Water finally brought us back to that fictional planet, the Metkayina clan brought new creatures and the underwater world of the planet to the big screen. But aside from the brief Windtraders sequence, the third movie don't introduce us to new side of the Na'vi. The Fire People ride Ikran just like the Sullys, even if they're painted new colors.

If something was missing for me in Fire and Ash, it's probably this lack of wonder. Instead, I'm in a world that I know and understand, allowing James Cameron's characters to take center stage. I wouldn't fault this pivot for a shorter movie, but the Avatar franchise isn't exactly known for its brevity.

The runtime is long, but the ending offers a number of payoffs.

Speaking of which, Avatar: Fire and Ash has a runtime of a whopping 197 minutes. And while there is plenty to enjoy in the threequel, the longest in the franchise thus far, those extra minutes can be felt. Certain sequences could be cut down to trim the fat, and ensure that audiences aren't exhausted by the time the movie's third act arrives.

That being said, it's a pretty excellent ending. Each character gets their moment to shine, and there are a number of sequences that I found quite moving thanks to how much time we've spent with the Sully family. So, even though at times I was looking at my watch to see what time it was during lulls in the movie, I was certainly giving it my full attention during its most important beats.

And while Fire and Ash is the third installment in a previously announced five-movie plan, the stakes don't make it seem like simply the middle point in a larger franchise. James Cameron kills off a number of major characters throughout the threequel, and makes major character developments for those who survive. And by the end, I was ready to see where things go next.

Overall, Avatar: Fire and Ash is an impactful and visually striking film. While it might be a bit too long for some modern audiences, James Cameron sticks the landing with a moving, character-driven story.

Filming Avatar movies is no small feat, and it should come as no surprise that it takes time for James Cameron and co. to shoot those massive blockbusters. The second and third installments in the franchise were actually shot simultaneously over several years, and a lot can change in that period of time. As cast member Signourney Weaver explained to CinemaBlend, during that stretch, she got to see the younger actors grow up. Weaver also joked about that, while the kids themselves talked about coming of age on set.

Sigourney Weaver Recalls Working With The Younger Actors Of The Avatar Franchise

The Alien icon was in a very interesting position while making the Avatar sequels, given her role as Jake Sully and Neytiri’s adopted daughter, Kiri. Because of that, Weaver shared a lot of scenes with the kid actors who make up the rest of the Sully family, including Jack Champion, Trinity Bliss and Britain Dalton. While speaking with CB about the franchise’s latest film, Fire and Ash, Weaver praised her co-stars, saying that they “come into their own” in the film. She also shared a sweet story about auditioning with Champion:

As a young person, I honestly couldn’t understand how adults would be so enamored with how me or other kids would grow over time. As an adult, though, I now understand it, and Sigourney Weaver’s sentiments really resonate with me. The Way of Water and Fire and Ash were filmed together between 2017 and 2020, so Weaver spent a lot of time with the kids. Of course, at the same time, they were getting acclimated to being on such a massive set and, as expected, they had some unique experiences.

Avatar’s Younger Actors Tell Us About Growing Up On Set

When CinemaBlend interviewed Avatar’s “kid” stars for The Way of Water, they expressed enthusiasm over being part of the massive franchise. Those feelings were still present when we spoke with them this time around. Now-21-year-old Champion, now-16-year-old Bliss and 22-year-old Bailey Bass (who plays Metkayina tribe member Reya) have fond memories of being on set during their formative years. Bass and Bliss spoke about the challenges of transitioning out of traditional school to film, though the latter has sweet take:

Those are memories that the stars will be able to hold onto for years to come. Imagine getting to shoot scenes and swim with Sigourney Weaver as well as other stars like Zoe Saldaña and Sam Worthington. And, of course, there’s the fact that the kids were directed by James Cameron, one of the most prolific filmmakers of all time. Needless to say, they had very unique childhoods.

Fans will get to see more of the results of the actors’ years of hard work when Avatar: Fire and Ash opens in theaters on December 19th as part of the 2025 movie schedule. In the meantime, grab a Disney+ subscription to stream the first two films in the series.

James Cameron has another movie on the horizon, and it’s the highly anticipated Avatar: Fire and Ash. One of the biggest titles on the 2025 movie schedule, Cameron’s sci-fi threequel is earning attention not just for the stellar 3D effects it boasts but also because of the financial elements at play. A lot has been reported about how much the movie supposedly costs to make. Now, Cameron himself is speaking out after being asked and, when that happened, he dropped a few F-bombs.

What’s evident upon even seeing a snippet of footage from one of the Avatar films is that they’re technical achievements, and it costs quite a bit of money to make such blockbusters. As of late, it’s been alleged that Fire and Ash has a production budget of $400 million, though that hasn’t been formally verified by Bob Iger or other Disney execs. James Cameron was faced with some finance-related questions recently and quipped that those queries were for Iger. Still, Cameron offered up this take on The Town with Matthew Belloni podcast:

While promoting this latest film, Cameron has been notably conservative when discussing the future of the Avatar franchise, for which he’s plotted two more movies. Despite those plans, the Oscar-winning filmmaker is cognizant of the fact that blockbusters are making less money at the box office and that production costs are increasing. What Cameron ideally wants is to continue telling stories about Pandora and the Na’vi but do so in a cost-effective way.

This, of course, all begs one question: what will James Cameron do with his franchise if Fire and Ash doesn’t make enough money. Well, he told CinemaBlend that he’s ready to make the fourth and fifth films. Cameron also told Matthew Belloni, however, that should the box office returns not work in his favor this time, he’s prepared to conclude the story of Jake Sully and his family:

Cameron also said he could write a book in under to wrap up lingering plot threads, which seems like a viable option as well. Still, as a fan, I’d love to see the other two films produced as Cameron would ideally prefer. As of late, box office analysts have been forecasting what kind of haul Cameron’s new movie will pull in. We ultimately can’t say what that final cume will be, at this point, but it is worth mentioning that the Canadian filmmaker’s movies have historically had legs at the movie theaters. That’s a big reason why the first two Avatar movies are two of the Top 3 highest-grossing films of all time.

Time will tell if Disney’s latest investment in James Cameron’s long-running franchise will pay off. Fans can check out (the reportedly pricey) Avatar: Fire and Ash when it opens in theaters on December 19. In the meantime, fans can prepare for the upcoming action movie by streaming the first two films in the series using a Disney+ subscription.

Hype is building around the 2025 movie release Avatar: Fire and Ash, and for good reason. One aspect of James Cameron's film that's sure to get fans excited is his use of insane 3D effects. Early screenings are already calling it “visually superb!” So it feels very fitting that lead actress Zoe Saldaña decided to bring that 3D vibe to a Miami screening by way of her floral dress.

At the Miami screening of Fire and Ash, Saldaña's floral ensemble seemed to be truly eye-popping. The Oscar winner was all smiles as she greeted photographers, and she looked absolutely stunning. Check out her dress, which I wished was currently in my closet:

With her hands up in the air, the Guardians of the Galaxy actress certainly isn’t hiding her excitement, and I'm just hyped over her gorgeous floral gown. Straight from Matthieu Blazy’s Chanel collection, Saldaña’s plunging white dress features 3D flowers from top to bottom. It’s like looking at a landscape painting that's just too difficult to ignore.

The Emilia Perez actress isn’t simply just posing with her red carpet fashion either, but she’s showing off a living work of art that that's just completely unforgettable to me. Saldaña seemed to relish relish the Chanel gown, and she even celebrated the look with the Instagram post below:

Talk about flawless! I just love Saldaña’s poise in every photo. Whether she’s all smiles while striking a pose or turning away from the camera with a serene expression, she's showing all kinds of model behavior.

With Avatar: Fire and Ash being one of the biggest movies to end the year with, it's not surprising that Zoe Saldaña would want to bring her a-game with her fashion choices. So far, she's brought back floating shoulders at the Paris photo call and rocked a long, lacy white gown at the China premiere. Needless to say, she's been dressed to impress.

As for Fire and Ash itself, Saldaña's character, Neytiri, further evolves in the movie. Neytiri’s character arc takes a dark turn and will have her grappling with the death of her oldest son, Neteyam (as seen in The Way of Water). The “pain” Neytiri endures is expected to turn into rage that could not only affect her but also her family. As the presence of the Mangkwan clan poses a new threat, as well as her conflicting feelings about her adopted human son, Spider, there's going to be a lot going on in this threequel

Honestly, Zoe Saldaña’s floral dress feels symbolic in mirroring her character’s evolution. Or, at the very least, it feels like a sweet counterbalance to the use of fire that's been teased in this latest Avatar movie.

Of course, while we're talking about Saldaña’s attire, we also have to give flowers (sorry) to her stylists for keeping her looking so chic during this press tour. I'm curious to see what kind of outfits the A-lister breaks out next, especially as awards season ramps up. More immediately, though, be sure to see Saldaña’s performance in Avatar: Fire and Ash, opens in theaters on December 19th.

The last time we caught up with the Sully family in 2022’s Avatar: The Way of Water, they were met with tragedy. One of Neytiri and Jake’s children, Neteyam, is killed in the third act while trying to rescue his siblings from Quaritch. In Avatar: Fire And Ash, the fallout of this is explored, particularly through Neytiri and Jake’s relationship. Sam Worthington previously teased a “division” that pops up between them, and I spoke to Zoe Saldaña about it.

In Fire And Ash, the core of Neytiri and Jake’s big conflict lies in if they are going to continue to welcome Spider into their family or cast him out following his ability to breathe on Pandora – which fans have been getting heated about since the plotline was revealed in a trailer. Here’s what Saldaña told us about Neytiri’s arc this movie around:

During CinemaBlend’s conversation with the Avatar star, Saldaña discussed exploring Neytiri’s hate toward humans further this time around, and it wasn’t an easy part of the character’s journey for her to delve into. As she continued:

In The Way Of Water, we definitely see some of this when Neytiri grabs Spider and threatens to kill him as leverage from Quaritch despite the human character being part of her family since he was a baby. The character certainly has seen a lot of “evil” from humans over the years, from them trying to colonize over the planet, to killing other Na’vi and her own son. But as Saldaña pointed out, she doesn’t think that gives her the right to let her anger control her.

Saldaña suggests Neytiri is a racist because she has taken such a heightened antagonistic approach toward humans. The actress also told us this about playing that role:

In addition to this aspect of Fire And Ash, Jake and Neytiri will also come across a new Na’vi clan led by a fierce leader named Varang. Quaritch is also back at it trying to hunt down Jake since he’s thought of as a criminal of Earth. The Sully family kids Lo’ak, Kiri and Tuk will also be dealing with the grief of their brother’s death.

You can see how Neytiri’s character goes from here when Avatar: Fire And Ash debuts in theaters on December 19. And check out what James Cameron told us about his current thoughts on Avatar 4 and 5 here on CinemaBlend.

While we are still a few weeks away from December 31, studios like to take this season to release previews for the biggest titles on the way in the coming calendar year. Hence, we've recently see the debut trailer for Toy Story 5, got an early look at The Devil Wears Prada 2, and been offered a first footage from The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. If you're looking to get a good sneak peek of Christopher Nolan's upcoming adaptation of The Odyssey, however, it's going to take a bit of extra effort on your part: you should plan to spend some time in IMAX theaters in the coming days, as extended previews of the epic are on the way to large format screens.

According to Variety, a plan has been announced that will see first looks at The Odyssey attached to major upcoming releases/re-releases. Starting this coming Friday, December 12, 70mm screenings of Ryan Coogler's Sinners and Paul Thomas Anderson's One Battle After Another (which are returning to theaters) will include what is being described as a "nearly six-minute prologue" from Christopher Nolan's adaptation of Homer's most famous epic poem. The following weekend (a.k.a. starting December 19), the same prologue will play in front of IMAX screenings of James Cameron's Avatar: Fire And Ash.

The trade report additionally notes that the full-length trailer for The Odyssey will play with all screenings of Avatar 3 nationwide. The promotion follows the release of the teaser for the film in front of Jurassic World: Rebirth and Superman screenings this past summer. There is no mention of if/when footage will officially be made available online (regarding either the prologue or the trailer).

This promotional strategy, of course, is not a new tactic for Christopher Nolan movies. If one were to rewind their memory just short of 20 years, one might recall the opening sequence of The Dark Knight playing in front of IMAX screenings of I Am Legend, and similar previews have been crafted in the years since.

The film, which is the first ever to be shot exclusively with IMAX cameras, will star Matt Damon as the legendary Odysseus, who finds himself facing a great number of perils as he journeys home after the Trojan War. The outstanding ensemble cast also includes Anne Hathaway, Charlize Theron, Zendaya, Tom Holland, Jon Bernthal, Robert Pattinson, and Lupita Nyong'o.

The Odyssey is Christopher Nolan's first film since Oppenheimer won Best Picture at the Academy Awards, and this time around (as of now), his work won't have as much direct competition at the box office. While it will be arriving a week after the live-action remake of Moana and two weeks before the premiere of the anticipated Spider-Man: Brand New Day, it currently doesn't have any Barbie-sized competition on its July 17 release date.

James Cameron's movies are known for cutting edge technology, and nowhere is that more obvious than the Avatar films (which are streaming with a Disney+). The science-fiction franchise will once again expand with the threequel Fire and Ash, which will further grow the world of Pandora. Surprisingly the title earned a Golden Globe nomination for "Cinematic and Box Office Achievement" prior to it even being released. And even Sam Worthington's wife is confused about that timing.

What we know about Avatar: Fire and Ash is limited, but fans are excited to see what comes next for Jake Sully and his family. The blockbuster will hit theaters December 19th, which is why it was so puzzling that it's already gotten a Golden Globe nom, especially since the category is partly about box office performance. The franchise celebrated with a post that you can see below:

The Golden Globes had some notable snubs, as well as some surprise nominations. Chief among them was the nod to James Cameon's third Avatar movie, which hasn't even arrived in theaters yet. Actor Sam Worthington plays Jake Sully in the property, and his wife Lara Worthington posted and deleted a comment (Via Us Weekly) that echoed many people's feelings. It read:

Honestly, same. While some critics have been lucky enough to see early screenings of Avatar: Fire and Ash, the same can't be said for the general moviegoing audience. The threequel simply hasn't had the chance to make any money at the box office, yet alone enough to warrant this Golden Globe nomination. Did voters give them a nod in advance of its expected money making, or was it in recognition for the spectacle of the upcoming blockbuster? It's unclear, but Worthington's wife isn't the only one questioning this particular nod.

Lara Worthington seemingly deleted this comment, but not before a few outlets reported on it. But she wasn't the only one questioning this nomination, especially since its tied to box office performance that hasn't even occurred yet. Indeed, the comments section contains some similar sentiments, case in point being:

• Box Office achievement? The Movie isn’t out yet. How do we know what the Box Office will be? - war.of.the.cookies
• How? - therickyzegeshow
• Ummm.... The movie isn't out yet and it's already a nominee for box office achievement - darsakdpk
• It’s not out yet…. What if it flops???? - jimtalks
• Proof Avatar is an industry plan - hellspawn_jero

Clearly Sam Worthington's wife isn't the only one asking questions here. It remains to be seen exactly how Avatar 3 performs at the box office, and if we end up seeing James Cameron's fourth and fifth installments as originally planned. While the original Avatar was the highest grossing movie of all time, only time will tell if Fire and Ash is able to live up to those expectations.

All will be revealed when Avatar: Fire and Ash hits theaters on December 19th as part of the 2025 movie release list. We'll just have to see if its able to make enough money to justify its Golden Globe nomination.

As we get ready for Avatar: Fire and Ash to be the next big blockbuster on the 2025 movie schedule, of course, we can’t help but wonder where the franchise goes from here. There are currently release dates set for Avatar 4 and Avatar 5 for 2029 and 2031. However, I asked the man behind Pandora himself, James Cameron, where he’s officially at with the projected sequels prior to Fire and Ash’s global release.

Production on Avatar: The Way of Water and Fire and Ash has been an extensive process that was in the making for over a decade following the success of the original Avatar movie in 2009. Filming officially took place from 2017 to 2020 before Way of Water’s colossal 2022 debut. Now that Fire and Ash is completely finished, and has been screened, Cameron said this about how ready he is to continue the saga:

As the Hollywood business tends to go, the fate of the Avatar movies will be in the hands of audiences this holiday season. Recent tracking projections (via Deadline) indicate it could have one of the biggest opening weekends of the year with a domestic debut in the $100 to $130 million range, but only time will tell whether moviegoers will still show up in droves for another adventure to Pandora.

The last two Avatar movies certainly inspire a vote of confidence, given they’ve made a collective $5.2 billion worldwide across just two movies, with it being one of the rare movies people spend extra on to see in 3D as well. Still, as Cameron waits and sees about Fire and Ash’s commercial success, he also told me this:

James Cameron has always been an ambitious filmmaker, and his excitement to work sounds as strong as ever, as his interests toggle between two more Avatar movies and other ideas floating in his head. The filmmaker recently worked with Billie Eilish on a 3D version of her live show, which is set to hit theaters this spring, and he also recently spoke about working on a new Terminator project he has a “stack of notes” on.

Every Avatar movie has been a technical challenge for James Cameron, with the filmmaker leading his cast and crew through shooting motion capture performances underwater. It remains to be seen which new challenges will come up for the fourth and fifth movies, should they go into production, but perhaps after what was achieved for Way of Water and Fire and Ash, there will be more momentum around Avatar 4 and 5?

The importance of the audience being on James Cameron’s side is certainly clear as we look forward to Avatar: Fire and Ash hitting theaters this December 19.

When James Cameron released the first Avatar movie well over a decade ago, he did so with a major focus on the fact that the film would be made in 3D. The technology, which had been around for decades and progressed greatly since the days of paper red and blue glasses, had evolved into a format that the futurist director believed would change cinema forever.

Technology has frequently pushed cinema. Theaters are always looking for new ways to entice audiences. We've seen IMAX become successful with its massive screens, and 4DX theaters offer guests an immersive experience. Other screen formats have been tried. While 3D hasn't taken over cinema, it is still around.

3D received a major push for many years. Those days seem to be over. Today, while there’s usually at least one movie available in 3D in your local cinema at any given moment, I’d wager the last time anybody saw a 3D movie in theaters was the last Avatar film, and the next time will be the next one.

James Cameron Blamed Projectors For The Lack Of 3D Success In Theaters

While 3D isn’t entirely uncommon, shooting a film in 3D natively is. Most 3D films are done in a post-production conversion, which Cameron doesn't like, a process generally agreed to be not only not as good, but also more expensive. When James Cameron was recently asked why nobody is making movies the way he does, he essentially blamed theaters.

Cameron suggested that projection issues, specifically brightness, could lead to substandard 3D experiences for the viewers, and that this may be a big part of the reason that audiences don’t care about 3D as they should. If they haven’t been wowed by 3D in the past, why should they spend the money now? And I have to say, I completely understand where the director is coming from after watching his latest movie.

My Avatar: Fire And Ash Screening Was A 3D Mess

As a professional writer of words about movies, I get to attend early screenings of many major films. I recently attended a screening for Avatar: Fire and Ash, and while my thoughts on the film itself will have to wait (it's good, don't worry), I want to talk about the viewing experience, because it wasn’t great.

My screening was supposed to be in 3D, but the first 20 minutes of it were not. From the first frame, while the visual image was quite impressive, brightness was not an issue. It was clearly not in three dimensions. I waited a couple of minutes, wondering if the early sequence wasn’t meant to be in 3D for some reason, but it quickly became clear that the 3D simply wasn’t working.

The people managing the screening scrambled to figure out what to do, but when nothing changed in the short term, I just assumed this screening was no longer 3D. That wasn’t that big a problem until the screen started to get an annoying flicker, which I think was the 3D projector trying to display the second image in order to create the 3D effect, but for whatever reason, failing to produce it.

After about 20 minutes, the decision was made to simply stop the film to attempt to fix the 3D problem. It took multiple attempts, but ultimately the 3D was fixed. The rest of the film played without incident.

To be clear, the 3D on Avatar: Fire and Ash is impressive, and I recommend anybody planning to see the film in theaters to see it that way. However, I was also left completely frustrated by the fact that 3D didn’t work for so long.

This isn’t a studio problem, or a 3D problem, and I’m not even looking to throw the theater in question where this happened under the bus, but if 3D is ever going to gain mass adoption from audiences or studios, issues like this need to be addressed. The theatrical experience is only as good as each link in the chain, and if one of them fails, the whole experience suffers.