One must strike while the iron is hot, as the old saying goes, and James Cameron is certainly not resting on his laurels. It was indeed already planned from the start, that there would be more films in the franchise, but according to early reports, part of that depended on the sequel to the highest-grossing film of all time actually also delivering on schedule. It sounded like a risky plan, 20 billion to go around and Cameron himself also testified to some nervousness before the premiere but it turned out that there was no need to worry about that. It was a monumental success for Avatar: The Way of Water, which at the time of writing has pulled in well over 20 billion Swedish kronor in revenue.
At a press event for the digital release of Avatar: The Way of Water, on March 28th, producer Jon Landau held a Q&A event and revealed that all of Avatar 3 and also the first part of Avatar 4 have already been filmed, this happened that is, during the time Avatar: The Way of Water was made. He also explained why they chose to film everything at the same time.
“We were not just filming Avatar 2, we were actually filming and capturing for 2, 3 and the first act of movie 4. Truth be told, there’s a time cut after the end of the first act of Avatar 4, and we needed to get all the kids before they got older.”
Between Avatar and Avatar: The Way of Water, there was, as is well known, a substantial jump in time, but that will not be the case in Avatar 3. You must therefore bear in mind that the children will be approximately the same age throughout the story and Metkayina will continued to have a large role in the story. Otherwise, few details have been made public. The closest we get to a reveal is that Cameron has hinted at a new type of Na’vi, which will show a darker side than we’ve seen in the previous two films.
If there are no delays, Avatar 3 will be released in theaters on December 20, 2024.
