When James Camerons fifth Avatar movie opens in theaters in 2031, Zoe Saldaa will end a whopping 26-year journey playing the Navi warrior and devoted mother Neytiri. Hows that for character longevity? Disney announced June 13 that Camerons three upcoming Avatar sequels have been pushed back on the release calendar yet again, extending the franchise into 2031.
Great! Im gonna be 53 when the last Avatar comes out, Saldaa humorously posted on her Instagram alongside a shocked face emoji. I was 27 when I shot the very first Avatar.'
Saldaas co-star Sam Worthington, who stars as Jake Sully in the franchise, will be 55 years old when the final Avatar movie hits theaters. Cameron will be 77 years old.
The second Avatar movie, Avatar: The Way of Water, opened in theaters last December, 13 years after the original movie broke box office records to become the highest-grossing movie of all time with $2.9 billion (unadjusted for inflation). While some doubted The Way of Water would be a hit, Cameron silenced the naysayers as the sequel generated $2.3 billion in worldwide ticket sales to become the third highest-grosser in movie history.
Disney had originally planned to release Camerons additional Avatar sequels two years apart from one another, with the third movie arriving in 2024. But now Avatar 3 has shifted to Dec. 19, 2025; Avatar 4 to Dec. 21, 2029; and Avatar 5 to Dec. 19, 2031. Based on this timeline, the final Avatar movie is coming 22 years after the original 2009 blockbuster.
Cameron has teased that Avatar 3 will introduce a more antagonistic race of Navi. Franchise producer Jon Landau told Empire magazine earlier this year that the group is the Ash People, described by the publication as an aggressive, volcanic race of Navi whose leader is Varang, played by Game of Thrones alum and Charlie Chaplins granddaughter Oona Chaplin.
There are good humans and there are bad humans, Landau said. Its the same thing on the Navi side. Oftentimes, people dont see themselves as bad. What is the root cause of how they evolve into what we perceive as bad? Maybe there are other factors there that we arent aware of.
LandausEmpire magazine interviewalso revealed that there will be a big time jump for Avatar 4, which will then lead into Avatar 5 and its partial setting on Earth. The producer previously confirmed Avatar 5 would visit Earth in an interview withGizmodo, saying, We go to it to open peoples eyes, open Neytiris eyes, to what exists on Earth.
As fans wait for Avatar 3 in 2025, they can stream Avatar and Avatar: The Way of Water on Disney+.