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‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ is slated for release in December
Caitlin Hornikin New YorkSunday 30 November 2025 22:17 GMTComments
CloseJames Cameron may end Avatar series after Fire and Ash
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Avatar director James Cameron has a plan B on the off chance the forthcoming film in the franchise isn’t a hit.
Ahead of the release of the third installment, Avatar: Fire and Ash, Cameron appeared on Matt Belloni’s The Town podcast to talk about his contingency plan if the film doesn’t earn enough at the box office for Disney to go ahead with the fourth and fifth movies.
Cameron acknowledged that he has been “in Avatar land” for 30 years. He understands the challenges of making a movie with an astronomical budget, though he didn’t disclose what Fire and Ash cost to make.
“I have no doubt in my mind that this movie will make money. The question is, does it make enough money to justify doing it again?” he said before adding, “If this is where it ends, cool.”
But there is a single plot line that the third film doesn’t quite tie up. Acknowledging that, Cameron said: “There’s one open thread. I’ll write a book!”
James Cameron speaks about the making of the third Avatar film on November 20, 2025 (Getty Images for 20th Century St)Cameron also drew a hard line in the sand when asked about handing the franchise’s reins over to someone else if it were to continue.
“I don’t think there’d ever be a version where there’s another Avatar movie that I didn’t produce closely,” he said.
The first Avatar film, released in 2009, remains the highest-grossing movie of all time earning nearly $3 billion. The second film, Avatar: The Way of Water, grossed $2.3 billion when it was released in 2022.
In the first and second parts of the franchise, viewers were introduced to two different Na’vi clans, the Omaticaya and the Metkayina.
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In both Avatar and Avatar: The Way of Water, the Omaticaya and the Metkayina clans are peaceful tribes and only retaliate when their land is threatened by humans. However, Cameron previously revealed that the next film will see the fiery side of these tribes, which “will be represented by the ‘Ash people’.”
He told France’s 20 Minutes earlier this year: “I want to show the Na’vi from another angle because, so far, I have only shown their good sides.”
At a special screening in April, Cameron said that the main characters are “put through the wringer” in the new film, with Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) telling Neytiri (Zoe Saldana): “We cannot live like this – we cannot live with this hate.”
Cameron also said that he “hopes this film can provide a shot in the arm for theatre owners, as we’re still struggling after the one-two punch of the pandemic and streaming.”
The plan is for two more Avatar films after Fire and Ash, which will be released in December 2029 and December 2031, respectively.
Avatar: Fire and Ash will be released in theaters December 19.
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