At this point, “Avatar” fans have become quite good at delayed gratification. “Avatar: The Way of Water” was originally scheduled to come out in 2014, but the sequel was delayed multiple times due to James Cameron’s desire to “future-proof” the franchise by inventing new technologies before they were needed. The film ended up hitting theaters in 2022, and its massive critical and box office success proved that audiences were still hungry for stories about Pandora after 13 years.
“Avatar 3” will be a much quicker turnaround because the second and third films were shot concurrently. But while the upcoming sequel was originally slated for a December 2024 release, Disney recently pushed it back to 2025 when it shuffled its release calendar this week. The move ended up delaying the entire “Avatar” franchise, so the fifth and final movie is now set to open in 2031.
As painful as the delay might be for “Avatar” fans, it’s not exactly convenient for the cast either. In an Instagram story announcing the news, Zoe Saldaña joked that her involvement the franchise will now span over 25 years of her life.
“Great! I’m gonna be 53 when the last ‘Avatar’ comes out,” Saldaña wrote. “I was 27 when I shot the very first ‘Avatar.’”
Throughout the entire process, Cameron and his team have continued to assure fans that the delays will be worth the wait. “Avatar 3” is expected to continue to expand the world of Pandora, introducing audiences to a new tribe of villainous Na’vi that live among fire.
“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,” Cameron said in a 2022 interview. “In the early films, there are very negative human examples and very positive Na’vi examples. 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.”
