How Avatar 3 Will Be DIFFERENT from the First 2 Films

Avatar: The Way of Water was released in theaters on December 16th, 2022, but director James Cameron is already talking about the 3rd installment in the series.

©Disney

Both the first and second Avatar films have portrayed the Na’vi in a positive light, but Cameron has hinted that we’ll see the dark side of the Na’vi in the 3rd movie, which has already wrapped production.

James Cameron went big with the 2nd Avatar movie, which has been described as visually stunning. The film was incredibly expensive to make — so much so that Cameron apparently told Disney that it would have to be “the third or fourth highest-grossing film in history” in order to break even.

©Disney

So far, Avatar: The Way of Water has made about $1.4 billion worldwide, making it the fifteenth highest global release of all-time (Variety).

Now, reports show that James Cameron is already focusing on the next movie in the series, which will apparently show the dark side of the Na’vi people. Both the first and second movies focused on the peaceful, good side of the Na’vi, with the invading humans usually being portrayed as the antagonists. Variety reports that Cameron “will introduce a third clan of Pandora that shows off the Na’vi’s darker side” in Avatar 3 (which has not yet been named).

Cameron has stated that this third movie “will explore different cultures from those already shown. The fire will be represented by the ‘Ash People.'” Cameron stated that he wants to “show the Na’vi from another angle because, so far, [he has] only shown their good sides.”

Avatar 3 will apparently swap the stories from the first 2 movies, with the humans being the protagonists and the Na’vi the antagonists. Cameron said, “In the early films, there are very negative human examples and very positive Na’vi examples. In ‘Avatar 3,’ we will do the opposite.”

©Deadline

The story will also involve “new worlds” and still include the main characters from the earlier films. Cameron has stated that “the last parts will be the best. The others were an introduction, a way to set the table before serving the meal.”

Production is already finished on the third Avatar movie, and it’s scheduled to arrive in theaters on December 20th, 2024. The franchise could be extended all the way to a 5th movie, which Producer Jon Landau has stated would include the Na’vi coming to Earth.