Avatar: The Way Of Water continues to crush it at the box office and is inching ever closer to becoming the highest-grossing movie of all time. Suffice it to say that while moviegoers love the second movie in the franchise, the wait is on for Avatar 3. Should these folks expect to see that relatively soon, or are they in for another thirteen years of waiting? Thankfully, the answer seems to be less than that, according to director James Cameron.
Entertainment Tonight caught up with the filmmaker on the red carpet of the Golden Globes earlier this month and was asked about when movie-goers might see Avatar 3 in theaters. Thankfully, Cameron didn't hesitate to answer and noted that the wait for the third movie wouldn't be nearly as long as the wait was for the second. He said,
Ideally, two years, because it’s all shot. … [Avatar 3] is shot, and the first part of [Avatar 4] is shot. So I think we’re getting a big, old green light from the world saying, ‘We want more of this.’
James Cameron's instincts seem spot on, and it doesn't seem like Disney will hesitate to roll out Avatar 3 given the money that Avatar: The Way Of Water is currently raking in worldwide. It also helps that all of the footage is shot, so it's not like there's any part of the active filming process holding up the post-production teams from doing their jobs.
It's worth mentioning that Avatar 3 is expected to arrive by December 2024, though some at CinemaBlend have made a case for bumping that up to 2023. James Cameron hasn't allowed a lot of wiggle room for any delays or issues that might spring up in post-production with the editing process in his projection, which could point to his confidence this movie is coming out on time.
One thing worth mentioning is that there were multiple reasons Avatar: The Way Of Water took so long to release. Some of those won't factor into this waiting period, and while there's no guarantee a delay or two might creep in, it certainly doesn't seem like there will be multiple years of extra waiting.
The full details about Avatar 3 aren't out just yet, but we do know a bit about the upcoming movie. James Cameron revealed it would follow the water-centric story of Avatar 2 with fire and introduce the Ash Na'vi into the mix. The latest Na'vi tribe will be led by a character played by Game of Thrones' Oona Chaplin and will apparently be considered the "evil" Na'vi tribe.
In terms of carryover plot lines from Avatar: The Way Of Water, it was also recently revealed that Jake's son Lo'ak will continue to develop his relationship with the tulkun Payakan, who will undoubtedly be handy as a whale-like creature in a movie teasing lots of fire. Let's hope we get to see it in 2024 as promoted because I think Avatar used up all of its delays in the first stretch of developing this franchise.
Avatar: The Way Of Water is still crushing it in theaters but will arrive on Disney+ sometime in 2023. As mentioned, the wait is on for Avatar 3 in December of 2024, so let's all collectively knock on wood and hope that nothing jeopardizes that.
