It’s going to be a long wait until it returns to Pandora, but according to the latest reports, work has officially begun on the next two chapters in director James Cameron’s ‘Avatar’ saga. Months after the release of ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’, the fourth and fifth installments have started making steady progress following the film’s strong performance at the box office that crossed the $1 billion mark.
‘Avatar 4’ and ‘Avatar 5’ greenlit
Executive producer Rae Sanchini, who worked on the third episode, confirmed that pre-production for the upcoming films is currently underway. In a statement to PEOPLE, Rae said, “We’re just figuring out the schedule right now,” adding, “We’re hard at work right now, budgeting, scheduling, planning, building our new pipeline for them. As far as we’re concerned, we’re going full speed ahead.”
The scripts for “Avatar 4” and “Avatar 5” are “brilliant”.
He also revealed that Cameron is developing new technologies with his team to enhance the visual story of the franchise. Sharing an update on the film’s script, he said, “We have the scripts, they’re great. As far as I’m concerned, we’re moving forward.”The update follows the success of Avatar: Fire and Ash, the sequel to Avatar: The Way of Water, which crossed the US$1 billion mark at the global box office just weeks after its release and grossed around US$1.48 billion worldwide.
‘Avatar 4’ to tell the Varang story
Reports indicate that ‘Avatar 4’ will delve into the “darkness” of the Varang and Eywa in the role of the formidable, sinister and antagonistic Na’vi. At the recent Saturn Awards, Cameron revealed that the Varang character could be the main focus of the new film. “From Fire and Ashes, Varang will have to be written a little bit going forward,” he said, explaining that he was mixing in the wide cast of characters, “because there are so many characters and plates spinning in the story.“The director has previously stated that the box office performances of his films are important to continue making big budget films. He previously stated that the box office performance of ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ would play a crucial role in determining whether the planned sequels would go ahead or not.
‘Avatar 4’ and ‘Avatar 5’ release dates
The as-yet-untitled fourth and fifth films are tentatively slated for theatrical release in 2029 and 2031.
