In Avatar 3, James Cameron plans to reverse a 32-year-old trick, making the sequel sadder. The first two movies in the sci-fi epic series, Avatar, explore the Na’vi humanoid species on the planet of Pandora as they face the threat of colonization. The movies are known for their gorgeous visual effects and world-building. Avatar: The Way of Water is one of the highest-grossing movies of the 2020s and the third-highest-grossing film of all time (via Box Office Mojo). This proves the franchise still stands strong after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Before Disney and their subsidiary 20th Century Studios even knew the second film would find success at the box office, though, they confirmed Avatar 3, 4, and 5. The production company created Avatar 3 alongside The Way of Water, and it has mostly completed filming as of the time of writing. James Cameron provided little tidbits about the upcoming sequels during an interview with the French news site 20 Minutes. Avatar 3 will take a page out of Cameron’s Terminator 2 playbook, simply reversing it in the upcoming Avatar sequel.
Avatar 3 Will Introduce Evil Na’vi Just As T2 Introduced A Good Terminator
In Terminator 2: Judgment Day, also called T2, T-800 acts as a good guy instead of a villain, battling against the evil Terminator T-1000 to protect Sarah and Connor. This was a major shift from the first Terminator movie where all Terminators are bad guys. Taking an opposite approach than he did 32 years ago, Cameron plans to introduce evil Na’vi to the movie Avatar 3. The movie will call the evil Na’vi the “Ash People.” These contrasting communities will serve as the focus of the plot, rather than the evil humans.
How Avatar 3’s Reversal Could Make The Movie Sadder
By introducing evil Na’vi to the world of Pandora, Avatar 3 has the potential to be much sadder than the first two movies in the sci-fi saga. Audiences fell in love with the positive humanity of the Na’vi species, but now they’ll see the horrors as well. It’s a harsh reminder of the cruelty and harm that exists in real life. However, the choice to introduce conflicting communities fits well with the other Avatar movies.
Both Avatar and The Way of Water look at the gray area, rather than depicting the world as black and white. Jake Sully, a man who worked for the corrupt humans, defected to the Na’vi because he wanted to do the right thing. The antagonists get moments of sympathy that humanize them to audiences. The movies also establish that not everyone within the existing Na’vi community agrees on the right way to handle things, with some good characters making bad choices. Ultimately, the change in Avatar 3 will help expand the world of Pandora by showing the Na’vi possess flaws too.
Sources: Box Office Mojo, 20 Minutes
