The Disney Movie James Cameron’s Avatar Really Parallels (Not Pocahontas)

For years, James Cameron’s Avatar has been compared to other films for its plot and characters – however, there is one Disney film that parallels perfectly, and it’s not the often-paralleled Pocahontas. Avatar may be the highest-grossing film of all time, but it isn’t the most original. The story of a white outsider learning the culture of a native community and then fighting to protect it has been done many times, from Dances with Wolves to The Last Samurai.

The film that Avatar has been the most compared to is Disney’s Pocahontas. Both Avatar and Pocahontas deal with themes of colonialism and forbidden love. While these two films are quite similar, there is another Disney film that is even more similar to Avatar. Disney’s 2001 animated film Atlantis: The Lost Empire has a striking resemblance to Avatar.

The Main Plots Deal With Finding A Power Source Tied To The Land

While a few stories are going on in both Avatar and Atlantis: The Lost Empire, the main conflict is fueled by a group of humans trying to locate a power source that is tied to the fantasy land they have found. In Avatar, the land Pandora is rich in a substance dubbed unobtanium which scientists and government officials from Earth want for themselves. However, the unobtanium is woven all through the planet, particularly under Home Tree where all the Na’vi live. The Na’vi are also completely in tune with the land, with the ends of their hair being able to connect to several animals and plants.

In Pocahontas, the settlers wanted to find gold that wasn’t there – however, in Atlantis the conflict is a lot more similar to Avatar. Atlantis’ conflict comes from a team of human explorers wanting to find the crystal that lies within Atlantis to bring it to the surface. However, the main character Milo discovers that the crystal is more than a power source – it’s the Atlanteans’ life source, and they would die without it. They even wear necklaces with pieces of crystal on them. The unobtanium in Avatar and the crystal in Atlantis have the same function and provide for the people of the land in a similar fashion.

The ‘White Savior’ Main Protagonist

While Avatar’s main protagonist Jake Sully could be seen as the equivalent to Pocahontas’s John Smith, he is actually a lot more similar to Milo in Atlantis. John Smith started out wanting to kill any Indian he saw, learned about the culture from Pocahontas, and then did little to end the conflict in the end. Jake Sully and Milo are both inexperienced outsiders thrust into a situation they aren’t fully prepared for, but grow into the typical ‘white savior’ seen in other films by the end of their journey.

Jake, played by Sam Worthington, is tasked with learning the ways of the Na’vi and quickly proves to be a ‘chosen one’. He not only catches on to their customs and language, but he becomes more skilled than other Na’vi. Jake is able to tame the leonopteryx and become the sixth Toruk Makto, a special title only earned by the bravest Na’vi, and leads the Na’vi into battle. Similarly, Milo is picked by his team to get close to the Atlantean Princess Kida to get information but ends up teaching her more about Atlantean culture, similarly leading the Atlanteans into battle at the end of the film.

Both Love Interests Are Princesses Who Save The Day

Neytiri and Kida are the love interests of the main protagonist of their perspective films and are almost the same character with very similar story beats. Neytiri, played by Zoe Saldaña, is the daughter of the Chief and a fierce warrior. The first time she meets Jake, she saves his life and the two begin to fall in love as she shows him Pandora and the ways of the Na’vi. In the attack on her people, Neytiri’s father is killed and, in the end, she is the one who saves the day by killing the military Colonel trying to destroy her home. In Atlantis, Kida’s character is very similar.

Kida also is the daughter of the Chief and proves to be a warrior herself. When she meets Milo for the first time, he is injured, and she heals him with her crystal necklace. She and Milo bond over their love for Atlantis as she shows him around the kingdom and their way of life, similar to Neytiri with Jake in Avatar. When Milo’s team attacks her people, Kida’s father is killed, and she merges with the crystal to become the new energy source to protect her people. It is also Kida’s power that saves the kingdom and its people by creating a shield to protect her home.

The Human Teams Have Similar Characters

The supporting cast of humans is also very similar in Avatar and Atlantis: The Lost Empire. The main villain in Avatar is the military Colonel Miles Quaritch, an older white man whose only focus is completing his selfish mission no matter what. This is the same Commander Rourke, the main villain in Atlantis, as he too is an older white military man who only cares about getting the power source out of Atlantis, regardless of how many lives will be lost. Sigourney Weaver’s character, the scientist Grace, is a tough and no-nonsense woman with who also provides a lot of humor, similar to the hilarious Packard in Atlantis.

One of the biggest parallels is Audrey in Atlantis and Michelle Rodriguez’s Trudy in Avatar. Both are young Latina women who take on a traditionally male role. Trudy is a pilot captain and Audrey is an expert mechanic. Both characters spend the majority of the film bonding with the main lead, but then have to participate in the attack on the native people. Trudy and Audrey are also the first characters, besides the male lead, to have a change of heart and switch sides.

The Films’ Endings Are The Same

At the end of Avatar, the human invaders are sent back home, with only a few chosen to stay. Jake officially becomes a Na’vi in the final moments of the film, and most likely becomes their new leader, since he is romantically involved with Neytiri. Unlike in Pocahontas, where a battle is completely avoided, the invaders are allowed to stay, and the two main love interests do not end up together, Atlantis takes on a similar ending to Avatar. Once the battle is over, the remaining humans are sent back to the surface – except Milo, who stays to be with Kida and helps rule Atlantis by her side.

While the legacy of Avatar is complicated, one of its biggest flaws was the unoriginal story. With all its similarities to Atlantis: The Lost Empire, this isn’t as surprising since the animated film was not well received when it first came out and one of its main criticisms was its story. However, the Avatar franchise can break away from the reputation of using a more stereotypical plot and characters. With the sequel hitting theaters soon, the series will have a chance to show that it has more original stories to tell and is more than a Disney rip-off.