The “Avatar” franchise has been captivating sci-fi film fans since the original “Avatar” movie debuted in theaters in December 2009.
“Avatar” and its first sequel, “Avatar: The Way of Water,” released in 2022, together grossed $5.2 billion around the world to become the No. 1 and No. 3 highest-grossing movies of all time, according to industry site Box Office Mojo.
Now, the franchise’s long-awaited third installment, “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” has debuted in theaters Dec. 19.
The new movie, whose release was delayed a year, brings back Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver and Stephen Lang, among other actors from the original film. It also features Kate Winslet, Edie Falco and Giovanni Ribisi, who all appeared in the 2022 sequel.
Director James Cameron has in the past promised two more “Avatar” movies are yet to come.
But in a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter published Dec. 17, Cameron said moving forward with the final two films, whose budgets would be as enormous as the first three movies, depends on the box-office success of “Avatar: Fire and Ash.”
“This can be the last one. There’s only one (unanswered question) in the story. We may find that the release of ‘Avatar 3’ proves how diminished the cinematic experience is these days, or we may find it proves the case that it’s as strong as it ever was — but only for certain types of films,” he said.
“It’s a coin toss right now,” added Cameron. “We won’t know until the middle of January.”
Here’s what we know about the possible final two installments in the “Avatar” franchise.
What Is the 'Avatar' Franchise About?
The sci-fi franchise, created by Cameron, tells the story of a group of humans in the antagonistic Resources Development Administration (RDA) who clash with indigenous humanoid called the Na’vi after greedily colonizing their moon Pandora to mine a valuable mineral.
The franchise’s long arc also features an unlikely love story between a human, Jake Sully, played by Worthington, and the Na’vi warrior Neytiri, played by Saldaña.
“Avatar: The Way of Water” introduces a new oceanic Na’vi tribe, the Metkayina clan, who live on Pandora’s reefs, as well as new sea creatures like the whale-like Tulkuns. In “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” viewers get to meet the Mangkwan clan, also known as the Ash People, who are led by their wicked leader Varang, played by Oona Chaplin.
When Will ‘Avatar 4’ Be Released?
The year delay in the release of “Avatar: Fire and Ash” pushed back the release dates of the franchise’s final two movies, Deadline reported in June 2023.
“Avatar 4,” which was originally scheduled for a December 2026 release, will now arrive in theaters in December 2029, according to Deadline.
But, as Cameron told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview published this week, he hopes the just-released “Avatar: Fire and Ash” is another box-office smash in order for him to continue with the franchise.
Still, Cameron shared tidbits about the script of “Avatar 4” with Entertainment Weekly way back in 2022, revealing that the movie would feature “a big time jump” to accommodate how much the franchise’s younger actors have aged in real life.
“They’re young men, young women at that point, when we get to the B side of that time jump,” he said.
During a 2023 appearance on “Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace,” Cameron confirmed he’d already begun working on both final films.
“‘Avatar 4’ and ‘5’ are both written. We even have some of ‘4’ in the can,” said Cameron.
“We’ve begun a franchise at this point,” he said, adding, “We can safely say we’ve begun a saga that can now play out over multiple films, which was our original goal.”
When Wallace asked if Cameron already knew the final scene of the entire franchise, Cameron responded, “Oh yeah. It’s all been written. The scripts for 2, 3, 4 and 5 were all finished over five years ago. It’s all mapped out.”
When Will ‘Avatar 5’ Be Released?
“Avatar 5,” which was originally intended to arrive in theaters in December 2028, is now set for a December 2031 release, reported Deadline.
How Will the 'Avatar' Story End?
As far as how the franchise’s story will wrap up, producer Jon Landau dropped a bombshell about the plot of “Avatar 5,” during a 2022 conversation with Gizmodo’s io9 blog.
“I wasn’t going to talk about it, but I’ve now subsequently heard that Jim (Cameron) has talked about it a little bit,” Landau said. “In movie five there is a section of the story where we go to Earth. And we go to it to open people’s eyes, open Neytiri’s eyes, to what exists on Earth.”
The journey, said Landau, will illustrate to the Na’vi that the colonizing humans in the Resources Development Administration don’t represent all humans.
“Earth is not just represented by the RDA,” he said. “Just like you’re defined by the choices you make in life, not all humans are bad. Not all Na’vi are good. And that’s the case here on Earth. And we want to expose Neytiri to that.”
