Ah, Avatar, the movie that took the world by storm in late 2009/early 2010 with its dazzling visuals and enormous box office haul (it still remains the highest grossing movie of all time). Since its massive success, James Cameron has announced multiple Avatar sequels, but because they've spent so long in development, we've barely learned anything concerning their plots. Fortunately, the director has provided another hint of what these movies will be about: family.
While discussing Toruk, the Cirque du Solei Avatar prequel that opens tonight in Brooklyn, James Cameron informed Variety that the Avatar sequels will share a similar feeling to the stage performance, but plot-wise, they don't directly tie together. He said:
The storyline in the sequels really follows Jake and Neytiri and their children. It's more of a family saga about the struggle with the humans.
Cameron didn't clarify whether Jake Sully and Neytiri would already have children when Avatar 2 begins or if we'll see this family grow over the course of the sequels. If it's the former, that rules out Avatar 2 taking place directly after the first movie. Regardless, Avatar built a strong sense of community among the Na'vi, and now that Jake has been permanently turned into one of those aliens (well, had his soul transferred into his avatar, anyway), he's part of a new family. As Jake and Neytiri face new challenges together, they'll also learn what it means to be good parents, which is just as important for the Na'vi as it is for humans.
Speaking of humans, despite Colonel Miles Quaritch's forces being defeated in Avatar, it's not surprising to hear that the humans aren't accepting defeat easily, so they'll be back to take Pandora for themselves, and they'll likely bring more reinforcements and better weaponry to get the job done. Jake and Neytiri will just need to make sure the little ones are out of the way before the bullets and spears start flying again.
While it's good to know there will be a family dynamic in Avatar 2 and its sequels, there still remain many mysteries concerning these movies that remain unanswered. Besides James Cameron continuous reminders about how they'll rock even more sophisticated movie-making technology, all fans can really look forward to at the moment is Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana reprising Jake Sully and Neytiri, respectively. Sigourney Weaver and Stephen Lang are also both slated to return, though it's unclear exactly how since both their characters died in the first movie.
With production on all these movies reportedly beginning next year, Avatar 2 is scheduled to hit theaters in December 2018, and the three sequels will follow in 2020, 2022 and 2023, respectively. We'll keep you updated on how all the Avatar installments are progressing as more relevant details come in.
