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When James Cameron’s Avatar released in 2009 to critical acclaim and the biggest box office numbers at the time, many did not expect a sequel at all. With the exception of Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Cameron had largely stayed away from sequels and wanted no part in them until he began formulating not one, not two but three additional stories to tell in the Avatar universe. After years of secrecy, speculation and anticipation, the long-awaited teaser trailer for the first of these sequels, Avatar: The Way of Water finally dropped and while it is roughly 90 seconds in length, it has offered a large glimpse into what can be expected from the new adventure on Pandora.
The Return of Stephen Lang
While his character of Colonel Quaritch was killed in the original film, it appears he has been brought back via the same process that permanently put Jake Sully into his avatar. Lang’s casting was announced as far back as 2010 and it is expected for his character to be an antagonist for not only The Way of Water but for the additional films planned in this series. Also returning back from the dead is Corporal Wainfleet (Matt Gerald) who perished in the previous film. Sigourney Weaver is set to return as well but she is not expected to reprise her role as Dr. Grace Augustine.
The World of Pandora Gets Bigger
As the title implies, much of the film will be located either on or near the oceans of Pandora as Jake, Neytiri and their family journey to find the ocean tribes of the Navi. Many of the cast members are said to have learned free diving as part of the filming process and there are many scenes from the trailer that include unknown characters swimming in the ocean and interacting with the aquatic life. While the film does not give away major plot details, it is possible that a major or climatic battle will take place on the ocean as several characters are seen emerging from the water while riding animals.
The Fight Is Not Over
The major corporation from the first film, the Resources Development Administration (RDA), is back to continue mining operations on Pandora for unobtanium. In spite of their forced exit following the major battle in the first film, the RDA has returned as there are shots of a new military base that is up and running as well as new mining equipment that is running on the planet. It is possible that Earth still hasn’t solved their resource problem and has secretly returned to Pandora to continue mining and risk running into another battle with the Navi.
The Expanding Sully Clan
As seen at the end of the first film, Jake Sully had decided to permanently entered his avatar and began a family with Neytiri, the Navi warrior who saved him. As the plot synopsis details, they have been together for ten years and have several children together. Also included in their family is a human named Javier “Spider” Socorro (Jack Champion) who was adopted by Jake and Neytiri after the climatic battle of the first film and prefers his time in Pandora rather than among humans. While Jake’s and Neytiri’s children aren’t prominently shown in the trailer, they will more than likely factor largely into the film’s events.
Avatar: The Way of Water is scheduled to release in theaters on December 16, 2022.
Featured Image Credit: Avatar: The Way of the Water Trailer
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