After only four weeks of release, the sequel is already the highest-grossing film released in 2022, based on worldwide ticket sales.
With ‘Avatar 2‘ set to hopefully cross $2 billion worldwide soon, a nearly impossible feat post-COVID, Cameron has announced that he plans to make more sequels.
“It looks like with the momentum that the film has now that we’ll easily pass our break even in the next few days, so it looks like I can’t wiggle out of this and I’m gonna have to do these other sequels. I know what I’m going to be doing the next six or seven years,” the filmmaker said in an episode of ‘Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace?’
What audiences can expect to see in ‘Avatar’ sequels
Diving into the upcoming sequels, Cameron stated that he has already finished ‘Avatar 3,’ adding that the scripts for both ‘Avatar 4’ and ‘5’ are both written.
The director filmed the entirety of the third movie, and the first act of the fourth movie back to back while filming ‘Avatar 2.’
in his words, “I’m sure that we’ll have a discussion soon with with the top folks at Disney about the game plan going forward for ‘Avatar 3,’ which is already in the can – we’ve already captured and photographed the whole film, so we’re in extended post-production to do all that CG magic. And then ‘Avatar 4’ and ‘5’ are both written. We even have some of ‘4’ in the can. We’ve begun a franchise at this point. We’ve begun a saga that can now play out over multiple films.”
On what to expect from ‘Avatar 3,’ Cameron previously told France’s “20 Minutes” that the next movie will explore cultures different what audiences have seen.
He said, “The fire will be represented by the “Ash People”. I want to reveal the Nav’is from another angle because, for the moment, I have only shown their good sides. In the early films, there are very negative human examples and very positive Navi’s examples. In Avatar 3 , we’ll do the reverse. We will also explore new universes 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.”
Franchise producer Jon Landau spoke to Entertainment Weekly, revealing that three installments are already on Disney’s calendar for theatrical release through the year 2028.
In his words, “That’s a generation of Sullys that we will be able to follow into the sequels. We want you to see Britain Dalton and Jack Champion, to see Bailey Bass and Trinity and Jamie Flatters, as they grow up and continue to play these characters. Each movie is going to introduce audiences to new clans, new cultures on Pandora. Once we introduce a character, they stay a part of the ongoing evolution. We just add to it. So you can expect to see the Metkayina that you meet in this movie in subsequent movies. There are other clans that we’ll introduce in movie 3 that you’ll see in movie 4 and so on and so forth.”
The untitled ‘Avatar 3’ is scheduled for release on December 20, 2024. ‘Avatar 4’ and ‘5,’ which Cameron plans to shoot together, are expected to debut on December 18, 2026 and December 22, 2028 respectively.