James Cameron confirms Avatar 3 will have a new clan of Na’vi, and a civil war
By Kieran Burt.
Even though Avatar: The Way of Water has only recently splashed into theatres, James Cameron is already giving us details of what audiences can expect in Avatar 3. In an interview with 20 minutes (via Total Film) Cameron revealed that the third instalment will introduce a new clan, the evil fire Na’vi.
Cameron explained Avatar 3 will explore “different cultures from those I have already shown. The fire will be represented by the ‘Ash People.’ I want to show the Na’vi from another angle because, so far, I have only shown their good sides.”
“In the early films, there are very negative human examples and very positive Na’vi examples,” he continued. “In Avatar 3 we will do the opposite. We will also explore new worlds, while continuing the story of the main characters. I can say that the last parts will be the best. The others were an introduction, a way to set the table before serving the meal.”
Both Avatar and The Way of Water focused on Na’vi vs human conflicts, so the third film introducing an evil tribe will be a first for the franchise. It’s possible that the fire Na’vi take a dislike to Sully and his family having human or “demon blood” running through their veins, or blame him for the destruction the RDA (Resource Development Organisation, the main antagonist) is causing.
It’s unknown if the RDA will be taking a backseat in this sequel, to make space for the new antagonists. But what is clear is that Cameron wants to take the franchise in a new direction, and continue to show different aspects of Pandora that audiences have never seen before.
Production on Avatar 3 has already been completed, and the film is scheduled to release on December 20 2024. No title has been released so far.
Cameron has also been open about his plans for the franchise beyond the third film. If he does make the fifth instalment – and he’s been open in saying that if the box office shows diminishing returns, he’ll stop – then the Na’vi will come to Earth.
That fact was revealed by producer Jon Landau in an interview with Gizmodo.
“Well, it’s funny. I wasn’t going to talk about it, but I’ve now subsequently heard that Jim has talked about it a little bit. In Avatar 5 there is a section of the story where we go to Earth. And we go to it to open people’s eyes, open Neytiri’s eyes, to what exists on Earth.”
“Earth is not just represented by the RDA,” he said. “Just like you’re defined by the choices you make in life, not all humans are bad. Not all Na’vi are good. And that’s the case here on Earth. And we want to expose Neytiri to that.”
Neytiri’s hatred of humans is further shown in The Way of Water with new character Spider. Having her witness some of the good humans can do would be a great character arc for her.
The Way of Water is currently playing in cinemas worldwide.
