"Avatar: Fire and Ash" New Trailer: Pandora Prepares for War in James Cameron’s Fiery Third Chapter in the Epic Sci-Fi Saga with Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, and Oona Chaplin
🎥 James Cameron pits the Na’vi against human invaders and the volcano-dwelling Ash People, as Jake and Neytiri fight to protect their family in a battle that could tear Pandora apart.
One of the common criticisms of the newly released trailer for the upcoming Star Wars spinoff The Mandalorian and Grogu, which dropped earlier this week, is that the story feels small—unworthy of a big-screen leap. There was a lack of excitement from Star Wars fans, likely due to its modest scale, low stakes, and the feeling that the trailer failed to deliver the cinematic grandeur audiences expect from a Star Wars film. Some viewers even called the upcoming Mandalorian movie light on scope, resembling more of a television event than a theatrical one. All valid points.
Filmmaker James Cameron, on the other hand, doesn’t have that problem. His Avatar franchise is built on sheer visual spectacle, technological innovation, and world-building so vast that every installment feels like an event designed for the biggest screen possible. In fact, he might have the opposite problem. The complaint about his Avatar films is that they’re too stuffed with visual detail, subplots, and extended runtimes—overwhelming audiences with more world-building than some feel they can handle.
Cameron thinks big, directs big, and delivers films that are perhaps too big for their own good. And sure, his Avatar films get a lot of hate for not having the same cultural resonance as other successful blockbuster franchises. But no one questions Cameron’s epic ambition or his ability to turn massive cinematic spectacle into box office gold. It’s true when they say never bet against James Cameron, because he always proves the skeptics wrong.
But in a world where films are starting to feel a bit small for the big screen, at least we have a filmmaker like Cameron who shoots for the stars and beyond. Now, can we just get more filmmakers to think that way—to think that the big screen is actually too small for their vision? Imagine a film industry where feature films are more determined to challenge audiences’ sensibilities, to push the boundaries of cinematic technology, and to make theatergoing feel like an unmissable event again. Now that’s a vision of the future we can get behind.
With that being said, Cameron will be delivering the third installment of his epic sci-fi fantasy saga this December. Now, will the movie be able to change the conversation about box office slumps, Hollywood being too boring and uninspired, and filmmakers lacking creative ambition or vision? Probably not, as there’s a whole sect of online discourse that seems more interested in shitting on Hollywood, movies, and the entertainment industry at large. Which makes us feel a little tired of the constant negativity drowning out genuine excitement for cinema. And it’s not the sentiment, but the disingenuous piling on that feels more like performative outrage than real criticism.
Look, for a certain generation of cinephiles, James Cameron holds a special place in their hearts. Count us among them. And while some have expressed their lack of enthusiasm for his Avatar franchise, maybe it’s worth remembering that Cameron has always aimed higher than most filmmakers dare. Now, with the third film on the horizon, we’re starting to see a bigger piece of his massive vision. These films are not only about nature vs. technology, indigenous vs. colonizers, families vs. invaders, but also about the rights to the land (Pandora, in this case) and who truly deserves to call it home. And with everything going on in the world today concerning ethnic cleansing, we think that message will resonate more than ever.
“What if every human being on Earth could live here without a mask? Then the Na’vi people will be gone,” warns Jake Sully (once again played through motion capture by Sam Worthington) in this new official trailer for Avatar: Fire and Ash.
The trailer teases an epic showdown between the Na’vi and a heavily armed human military force. It also introduces a new Na’vi character named Varang (played by Game of Thrones actress Oona Chaplin), the leader of a volcano-dwelling clan known as the “Ash People.”
“The fire came from the mountain, burnt our forest,” Varang recalls at the start of the trailer. “My people... cried for help. But Eywa did not come.”
Varang is referring to the “Great Mother,” the deity all Na’vi worship and devote themselves to. It seems Varang may be a Na’vi who has lost her faith, making her vulnerable to the ruthless Colonel Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang), who desperately needs Pandoran allies for his invasion.
Avatar: Fire and Ash seems to be setting up the pieces for a full-scale war, where the fight over Pandora is fueled by vengeance, betrayal, and the clash between human greed and Na’vi resilience. Jake Sully (Worthington), Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña), and their children are caught in the middle, torn between protecting their family and leading their people in the battle. But if Varang’s volcano-dwelling Na’vi clan joins to fight on the other side, then Pandora could be facing a devastating civil war that threatens to tear the planet apart, with the battle closing in from all sides.
From the ocean to the volcanoes, from the water to the fire, Pandora is transforming into a battlefield unlike anything we’ve seen before. It’s a visual extravaganza that might be worth the price of admission alone.
Also starring Sigourney Weaver, Kate Winslet, Britain Dalton, Trinity Jo-Li Bliss, Jack Champion, Bailey Bass, CCH Pounder, David Thewlis, Cliff Curtis, Giovanni Ribisi, Joel David Moore, Edie Falco, Jemaine Clement, and more, Avatar: Fire and Ash is set to ignite theaters worldwide on December 19th.
Official Synopsis:
With “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” James Cameron takes audiences back to Pandora in an immersive new adventure with Marine turned Na’vi leader Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), Na’vi warrior Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña), and the Sully family.
