After more than a decade of waiting, Avatar: The Way of Water's trailer is finally here to take us back to the beautiful landscapes of the alien planet Pandora. James Cameron’s highly-anticipated sequel is the first of four new movies set in the fantastic eco-friendly universe, expected to expand the mythology the visionary filmmaker only scratched the surface of in the original 2009 release.
The trailer brings back Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) fourteen years after the first film's events, when the human explorer decided to remain forever trapped in the body of a blue alien. Jake and Neytiri are living happily after ever, and are now the proud parents of a young blue boy. However, peace in Pandora won’t last, as the humans are back to torment the planet, leading to a new confrontation between the invader species and the native people of Pandora. The trailer also underlines how the sequel is all about a new generation, putting Jake and Neytiri’s son into the spotlight and turning him into the lead of a new adventure.
The new trailer showcases how 20th Century Studios spared no expense in Avatar 2’s development. While the first movie has its fair share of exciting set pieces, one of the main reasons that made Avatar a blockbuster colossus was its innovative approach to 3D and CGI, which allowed the audience to feel like they were inside the movie. The sequels could not afford to be any less stunning, a difficult trick to pull, given that CGI-blockbuster has been dominating the market for a while now. Even so, the Way of Water trailer promises to explore new fantastic corners of Pandora as we get a stunning look at the secrets hidden beneath the alien planet’s oceans.
Avatar made history in 2009 by becoming the first movie to cross the $2.8 billion mark at the international box office, taking over Titanic's position as the biggest release ever, with $2.2 billion. Avatar still holds the global crown, but since then lost a few positions in the domestic ranking. Avatar had the top spot at the domestic box office with $760.5 million from 2009 till 2015, when Disney’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens got $936 million and pushed it to second place. After that, Avatar would drop another position in 2019 when Disney’s Avengers: Endgame amassed $858 million. Finally, the film received a new push below last year, with Sony’s Spider-Man: No Way Home hauling in $804 million. We are all very interested in seeing if The Way of Water can break new records for the franchise, especially since Cameron has been producing all four sequels simultaneously.
The Way of Water also sees the return of Stephen Lang, Giovanni Ribisi, Joel David Moore, Dileep Rao, CCH Pounder, and Matt Gerald. Sigourney Weaver is also set to come back, although in a different role. New cast additions for Avatar: The Way of Water include Kate Winslet, Cliff Curtis, Edie Falco, Brendan Cowell, Michelle Yeoh, Jemaine Clement, Oona Chaplin, Vin Diesel, and CJ Jones. Cameron wrote the script for Avatar: The Way of Water together with Josh Friedman. Cameron is also producing the sequel with Jon Landau, who co-wrote the script for the first film in the franchise.
Avatar: The Way of Water is set to premiere on December 16. The other three sequels come to theaters every two years, in 2024, 2026, and 2028. Check out the new trailer below: