Avatar 3 : Fire and Ash
James Cameron will co-produce, co-edit, co-write, and co-direct the upcoming epic science fiction film Avatar: Fire and Ash, which will be released in the United States. It is the third film in the Avatar series and the sequel to Avatar (2009) and Avatar: The Way of Water (2022), both of which were produced and distributed by 20th Century Studios. The movie was being made by Cameron and Jon Landau.
Cameron, Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, Josh Friedman, and Shane Salerno were involved in the writing process. Cast members Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Stephen Lang, Sigourney Weaver, Joel David Moore, CCH Pounder, Giovanni Ribisi, Dileep Rao, Matt Gerald, Kate Winslet, Cliff Curtis, Edie Falco, Brendan Cowell, Jemaine Clement, Britain Dalton, Trinity Jo-Li Bliss, Jack Champion, Bailey Bass, Filip Geljo and Duane Evans, Jr. reprise their roles from previous films, while David Thewlis and Oona Chaplin portray new characters.
Following the success of the first film, Cameron, who had stated in 2006 that he would like to make sequels to Avatar (2009) if it was successful, announced the first two sequels in 2010, with the then-untitled Avatar 3 aiming for a 2015 release. However, the addition of two more sequels (four in total), and the development of new technology required to film performance capture scenes underwater, a feat never accomplished before, led to significant delays to allow the crew more time to work on the writing, pre-production, and visual effects.
Avatar: Fire and Ash started shooting simultaneously with Avatar: The Way of Water in New Zealand on September 25, 2017; filming completed in late December 2020, after over three years of shooting.
The film’s theatrical release has been subject to nine delays, with the latest occurring on August 9, 2024; it is scheduled for release on December 19, 2025. Avatar 4 and Avatar 5 are two more sequels that are currently in various stages of production and will likely be released in 2029 and 2031, respectively.
Cast
credit – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avatar:_Fire_and_Ash#Cast
- Sam Worthington as Jake Sully, a former human who fell in love with Neytiri and befriended the Na’vi after becoming a part of the Avatar Program, eventually taking their side in their conflict with humans and transferred his mind into his avatar permanently. After the second film, he and his family have left the Omatikaya clan and joined the Metkayina clan.[9][10]
- Zoe Saldaña as Neytiri, Jake’s wife who left the Omatikaya, and joined the Metkayina.[9]
- Sigourney Weaver as Kiri, the daughter of Dr. Grace Augustine’s Na’vi avatar who was adopted by Jake and Neytiri.[11]
- Stephen Lang as Colonel Miles Quaritch, formerly a human military commander who led the forces of the RDA, the human organization colonizing Pandora, and died in their conflict with the Na’vi in 2154. He and other fallen soldiers were later resurrected as Avatar “recombinants”.[12]
- Giovanni Ribisi as Parker Selfridge, the disgraced former head administrator for the RDA mining operation in the first film.[13][14][15]
- Kate Winslet as Ronal, a free diver of the Metkayina and Tonowari’s wife, who is pregnant.[16][17][18][19]
- Cliff Curtis as Tonowari, chieftain of the reef people clan of Metkayina.[20][21]
- Joel David Moore as Dr. Norm Spellman, a former scientist of the Avatar Program who chose to side with the Na’vi in the first film.[22]
- CCH Pounder as Mo’at, the Omatikaya’s spiritual leader and Neytiri’s mother.[23][24]
- Edie Falco as General Frances Ardmore, Quarritch’s successor as commander of the RDA’s military operations.[25]
- Brendan Cowell as Captain Mick Scoresby, the former commander of a private sector marine hunting vessel on the planet of Pandora who previously lost an arm to Payakan.[26][27]
- Jemaine Clement as Dr. Ian Garvin, a marine biologist employed by Scoresby.[28]
- Britain Dalton as Lo’ak, Jake and Neytiri’s second son and the narrator of the film.[29][30][31][32]
- Trinity Jo-Li Bliss as Tuktirey (“Tuk”), Jake and Neytiri’s daughter and their youngest child.[29][30][31][33]
- Jack Champion as Miles “Spider” Socorro, the teenaged son of Quaritch born in Hell’s Gate (the human base on Pandora in the first film) who was rescued and adopted by Jake and Neytiri after they had previously killed his father.[29][30][31][34]
- Bailey Bass as Tsireya (“Reya”), a graceful and strong free diver of the Metkayina and Tonowari and Ronal’s daughter. In the second film, Tsireya emerges as Lo’ak’s love interest.[29][30][31][35]
- Filip Geljo as Ao’nung, a young male hunter and free diver of the Metkayina and Tonowari and Ronal’s son.[29][30][31]
- Duane Evans, Jr. as Rotxo, a young male hunter and free diver of the Metkayina.
- Dileep Rao as Dr. Max Patel, a scientist who worked in the Avatar Program and came to support Jake’s rebellion against the RDA.[36]
- Matt Gerald as Corporal Lyle Wainfleet, a mercenary who fought and died in the RDA’s battle against the Na’vi in 2154. Years later, the RDA placed his memories into a recombinant.[37]
David Thewlis has been cast as Peylak, a Na’vi character who will be featured in Avatar: Fire and Ash along with Avatar 4 and 5.[38][39][40][41][42][43] Oona Chaplin will portray Varang, the Na’vi leader of a volcano-dwelling “Ash People” clan.[44][45][46][47] Cameron said of Varang that “Varang is the leader of a people who have gone through an incredible hardship. She’s hardened by that. She will do anything for them, even things that we would consider to be evil.”[48] The film will also see the return of Payakan, the Tulkun who befriends Lo’ak.[27]
Production
Development
James Cameron stated in 2006 that he hoped to make two Avatar sequels if the first one was successful. He stated in 2010 that the film’s widespread success proved his intention to do so. Initial release dates for the sequels were December 2014 and December 2015. He included some scenes in the first movie so that the story could continue in the future. Cameron planned to shoot the sequels back-to-back and to begin work “once the novel is nailed down”.
The sequels were confirmed as continuing to follow the characters of Jake and Neytiri in December 2009. Cameron implied that the humans would return as the antagonists of the story. In 2011, Cameron stated his intention to film the sequels at a higher frame rate than the industry standard 24 frames per second, in order to add a heightened sense of reality.
In 2013, Cameron announced that the sequels would be filmed in New Zealand, with performance capture to take place in 2014. An agreement with the New Zealand government required at least one world premiere to be held in Wellington and at least NZ$500 million (approximately US$410 million at December 2013 exchange rates) to be spent on production activity in New Zealand, including live-action filming and visual effects. The New Zealand government announced it would raise its baseline tax rebate for filmmaking from 15% to 20%, with 25% available to international productions in some cases and 40% for New Zealand productions (as defined by section 18 of the New Zealand Film Commission Act 1978).
In February 2016, production of the sequels was scheduled to begin in April 2016 in New Zealand. Russell Carpenter, Cameron’s collaborator on True Lies and Titanic, and Aashrita Kamath, the film’s art director, joined the four sequels as crew members. Performance Freediving International founder Kirk Krack taught the cast and crew how to free dive during the underwater scenes. On July 31, 2017, it was announced that the New Zealand-based visual effects studio Weta Digital had commenced work on the Avatar sequels.
Cameron stated that this film was separated from Avatar: The Way of Water because the original concept of that film had too much material. Later, it was revealed that Cameron, Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, Josh Friedman, and Shane Salerno participated in the writing process of all of the sequels before being assigned to finish the separate scripts, making the eventual writing credits unclear. Cameron stated: “In a nutshell, we had too many great ideas packed into act one of movie 2. The [film] was moving like a bullet train, and we weren’t drilling down enough on character. So I told them, “Guys, we have to split it.”
In November 2018, BBC News reported that Avatar: The Seed Bearer was a potential title for the film after getting a scoop for the future plans. Three months later, Cameron told Entertainment Tonight that it is in consideration and no final decision was made at that time. On August 9, 2024, the official title of the film was revealed by Cameron as Avatar: Fire and Ash at the D23 fan convention.
Cameron said of the title “I don’t think I could say too much about it until you actually see the film and you see what it means, but if you think of fire as hatred, anger, violence, that sort of thing, and ash is the aftermath. So, what has transpired since? Loss, grief, right? And then what does that cause in the future? More violence, more anger, more hatred. It’s a vicious cycle. So that’s the thinking.”
Writing
By including “Ash People,” which are fanciful versions of Na’vi, Cameron wanted to explore “different cultures” from the first two Avatar films. He chose them to add “another angle” as enemies because Cameron previously took Na’vi “good sides” and humans on another. Landu said:
“On the Na’avi [sic] side, there are good humans and bad humans, but most people don’t think of themselves as bad. How did they become what we perceive to be bad? What is the underlying cause? We might not be aware of any other factors there.”
Cameron said that “One thing we wanted to do in this film is not be black-and-white simplistic. or simple blue and pink. … We’re trying to evolve beyond the ‘all humans are bad, all Na’vi are good’ paradigm.”
The Wind Traders, who Cameron described as “nomadic traders, equivalent to the camel caravans of the Spice Road back in the Middle Ages,” are also introduced in the film. And you know, they’re just fun. They live in harmony with their creatures, like all Na’vi.”
Cameron also said that:
The big [creative] advance in [‘Fire and Ash’] is just going to be greater character depth,” Cameron said. “We’re seeing new creatures, new cultures—everything you’d expect from an “Avatar” movie. However, the whole point of this trilogy is to live with these people and go on this huge journey with them. So, I don’t think it’s about “we’re going to show you the best water [VFX] ever done,” but rather about getting deeper into the characters’ souls. Additionally, some very intriguing new characters are introduced. This is a journey over time. It will transpire throughout movies three, four, and five. There’s an epic cycle to the whole thing.
Champion said of reading the script for Fire and Ash:
“I was very shocked by it. It just takes a hard left turn, and that’s not a bad thing. A wrecking ball appears just when you think you know where it is going. So you’re completely like, ‘Oh wow, I never thought that would’ve happened.’ In addition, you see more of Pandora and learn about more cultures. Therefore, I believe it is even superior to Avatar 2. They will all improve when they work together.”
Casting
In January 2010, it was revealed that Zoe Saldaa and Sam Worthington had signed on to reprise their roles in the sequels. Cameron also stated that Sigourney Weaver would be featured in all three sequels (the fourth one was not planned at the time) and that her character Grace Augustine would be alive, but it was later revealed she would instead be playing Kiri, Jake and Neytiri’s adopted daughter. In August 2017, in an interview with Empire, Cameron revealed that Stephen Lang would not only be returning in all four sequels but he would also be the main villain in all four films.
In August 2017, Matt Gerald had officially signed on to portray his first film’s role Corporal Lyle Wainfleet in all upcoming sequels. On October 3, 2017, Kate Winslet had signed on in all four sequels for an unspecified role in the film. “Kate and I had been looking for something to do together for 20 years, since our collaboration on Titanic, which was one of the most rewarding of my career,” Cameron remarked, noting that her character’s name was Ronal.
Dileep Rao’s return to the role of Dr. was made official on January 25, 2018. Max Patel. Because she would only have one month of shooting, Winslet said that her role was “relatively small relative to the lengthy shoot.” However, she also said that she was “a pivotal character in the ongoing story.”
“A strong and vibrant central character who spans the entire saga of the sequels,” beginning with Fire and Ash, Oona Chaplin joined the cast in June 2017. Eiza González also auditioned for Chaplin’s role. In April 2018, David Thewlis revealed his involvement in the franchise, stating that he would be featured in three of the four sequels, later stating in January 2020 that his character was a Na’vi. This led to Thewlis being largely reported as part of the cast of Avatar: The Way of Water; however, he stated in June 2020 that the reports were wrong, and that he would actually be a part of Avatar: Fire and Ash up to 5.
Filming
On September 25, 2017, simultaneously, principal photography for Avatar: The Way of Water and Fire and Ash began in Manhattan Beach, California. On November 14, 2018, Cameron announced filming with the principal performance capture cast had been completed. The majority of the next two sequels’ filming will begin after post-production on the first two has been completed. According to producer Jon Landau, live-action filming for Avatar: Fire and Ash and its predecessor commenced in New Zealand in early 2019.
On March 17, 2020, Landau announced that the filming of the Avatar sequel films in New Zealand had been postponed indefinitely in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, he stated that production would continue in Los Angeles. However, work on visual effects continued at Weta Digital in Wellington.
In early May, health and safety production protocols had been endorsed by the New Zealand government, allowing filming to resume in the country. On May 31, part of the Avatar crew including James Cameron were granted entry into New Zealand under a special visa category for border exemptions for foreigners deemed essential to a project of “significant economic value”. Landau and Cameron posted an Instagram photo on June 1, 2020, indicating that they had returned to New Zealand to resume filming.
After their arrival, all 55 crew members who had traveled to New Zealand started a 2-week government-supervised isolation period at a hotel in Wellington before they would resume filming. This would make Avatar: The Way of Water and Avatar: Fire and Ash the first major Hollywood blockbusters to resume production after postponing filming due to the pandemic.[non-primary source needed] In September 2020, Cameron announced that 95% of Avatar: Fire and Ash had been completed. December 2020 marked the end of filming.
Cameron provided the following, Avatar: Fire and Ash update in February 2024:
It’s pretty much in the can. We are filming pick-ups on [Fire and Ash], which are only filling in the remaining 2 or 3 percent. In June, we will also be filming live-action pick-ups, which will add another couple of percent. We’ve got about a quarter of movie 4 in the can. We are currently working on the VFX for [Fire and Ash], which is a huge undertaking. To finish it, I’ll need every second between now and then.
The technology is now at a point where it truly meets our requirements. As time goes on, we incrementally improve, but we are still there. We jumped back, which is why we worked on it for seven years and shot the two films together for four years. It’s not about the technology, but about the minds and eyes of the computer artists. It’s an extremely creative procedure—it’s art. In order to get everything just right right now, thousands of people are involved and leading the orchestra.
The New Zealand Film Commission acknowledged at the beginning of July 2022 that the Avatar sequels had received more than NZ$140 million in taxpayer funding through the country’s Screen Production Grant. By comparison, The Hobbit trilogy had received NZ$161 million in film subsidies. The Economic Development and Regional Development Minister Stuart Nash argued that New Zealand’s film subsidies for major Hollywood products brought substantial overseas investment and jobs to the New Zealand film industry. ACT Party deputy leader Brooke van Velden criticized the Government’s film subsidy program for allegedly diverting public funding from other areas.