Avatar: The Way of Water has been a massive hit with audiences all over the world, and we can safely say that the franchise's future looks promising. Director James Cameron has already started working on Avatar 3 and parts of Avatar 4. With the success of The Way of Water, Avatar 5 is also in the works.
Recently, in an interview with Empire magazine, producer Jon Landau shared exciting details about the next three sequels of the Avatar franchise. It is known from previous comments that Cameron has big plans for the upcoming films and has hinted that Avatar 3 will introduce even more threatening Na'vi characters. As a result, we can expect the sequels to explore the world of the characters in new and exciting ways, exploring their culture and mythology.
Landau confirmed that this new race would be referred to as the Ash People, a hostile and aggressive nation. Furthermore, we found out that Charlie Chaplin's granddaughter, Oona Chaplin, will play the Ash People leader. This is the first time fans have received confirmation that Chaplin will join the cast as a potential antagonist of the upcoming films. Even so, there is much to consider before making conclusions about who the real bad guys are. Landau mentioned that, just like in human society, there are good and bad Na'vi:
"What is the root cause of how they evolve into what we perceive as bad? Maybe there are other factors there that we aren’t aware of."
Pandora Could be Earth's Hope
Avatar 4 is set to take a bold step forward into Avatar 5, according to the same interview. Also, in an earlier conversation with Gizmodo, Landau provided some exciting insights into what's to come.
Continuing the series, the fifth installment will take place partially on Earth, showing audiences a planet in danger of collapsing. Humanity searches for a sustainable future on Pandora as Earth becomes overpopulated, and its resources are depleted. The producer confirmed that Avatar 5 would explore the idea of Earth as a dying planet and a population struggling to survive.
Yet, despite these challenging circumstances, Landau emphasized that the Avatar films offer a positive message of hope, suggesting that humanity is still capable of changing course and creating a better future. Fans can look forward to what will hopefully be a steady stream of Avatar releases, with Avatar 3 set for Dec. 20, 2024, Avatar 4 on Dec. 18, 2026, and Avatar 5 on Dec. 22, 2028.