Everything You Need to Know About ‘Avatar 3’ (Which Hits Theaters in 2025)

*Warning: Major spoilers ahead*

We hope you're ready for more stunning visuals, action-packed sequences and sci-fi world-building, because Avatar 3 is officially in the works.

All the way back in 2006, James Cameron teased that he wanted to make sequels to Avatar if the first movie turned out to be a success (and based on those box office numbers, we'd say that it was). So, the director released Avatar: The Way of Water in December 2022, and it quickly became clear that the franchise still had plenty of steam left, as the movie became one of the top five highest-grossing films of all time (worldwide).

Now, Avatar 3 has already been filmed, but fans anxious to see more of the Na'vi will have to be patient, because the film isn't scheduled to hit theaters until December 2025 (we know—it feels like ages away). However, while it may be a while before we return to the world of Pandora, we can still latch on to all the tiny bits of information that we already have. So, we present everything we know about Avatar 3, from the plot to the cast to the budget—and even the information we have on future sequels.

We don't know if your planner extends this far, but Avatar 3 is scheduled to be released on December 19, 2025. The release date has been pushed back *multiple* times, but as of now, it seems like we may finally get the third Avatar film come Christmas 2025.

Originally, director Cameron teased that fans could expect Avatar 3 in 2015, but once it was revealed that there were four planned sequels in the Avatar franchise, that date got pushed to 2020. Then, following more delays, the COVID-19 pandemic and now, strikes within Hollywood, the movie is set to hit theaters in 2025 (ten years after its original teased date).

The 2025 date was shared to the official Avatar Instagram in June, with a quote from producer Jon Landau, who said, “Each Avatar film is an exciting but epic undertaking that takes time to bring to the quality level we as filmmakers strive for and audiences have come to expect. The team is hard at work and can’t wait to bring audiences back to Pandora in December 2025.”

If you're caught up on the Avatar franchise, you know that the most recent sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water, took place 16 years after the events of the first film. In the second installment, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) is the chief of the Omatikaya clan, and he is raising a family with the love of his life, Neytiri (Zoë Saldaña). However, when the Resources Development Administration (RDA) tries to colonize Pandora once again, Jake must be prepared to lead a battle.

By the time Avatar: The Way of Water ends, Jake and Neytiri have decided to join the Metkayina clan, moving their lives to the sea, where they plan to continue their operation against the RDA.

So, what does that mean for Avatar 3? Well, in no major surprise, now that water’s been covered, Cameron wants to shift his focus to fire. Specifically, Avatar 3 will focus on the “Ash People,” who are fiery versions of the Na'vi.

Cameron told French outlet 20 Minutes that Avatar 3 zeroes in on this third clan: “[Viewers can expect] different cultures from those I have already shown. The fire will be represented by the ‘Ash People.’ I want to show the Na’vi from another angle because, so far, I have only shown their good sides.”

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, actor Jack Champion said of the script, “I was very shocked by [Avatar 3]. It just takes a hard left turn, and that’s not a bad thing. You think you know where it’s going, but then a wrecking ball comes...So you’re completely like, ‘Oh wow, I never thought that would’ve happened.’ You also see more regions of Pandora, and you get introduced to more cultures. So, I think it’s even better than Avatar 2. Collectively, they’ll each get better.”

If there's one thing we know about James Cameron, it's that he loves a long movie. For reference, Avatar had a running time of 162 minutes, while The Way of Water had an even longer running time: 192 minutes. So, it's fair to say that Avatar 3 won't exactly be a short film.

As of December 2022, Avatar 3 was around nine hours long, but don't fret—Cameron doesn't expect moviegoers to sit in theaters for that long.

While the theatrical film release will certainly be cut down (likely to around a three-hour runtime), Cameron still has hopes of letting viewers see the full version. Entertainment reporter Jeff Sneider shared that Disney+ was in talks to release the nine-hour edition as a miniseries following Avatar 3’s theatrical release (however, as of now, that's just a rumor).

There is no official title yet for Avatar 3, but one has been mentioned: Avatar: The Seed of Bearer.

All the way back in 2019, Entertainment Tonight asked Cameron about a list of Avatar titles that had leaked the year prior. “I can neither confirm nor deny,” the blockbuster producer stated, when asked if these were going to be the official sequel titles or not. However, one of those names—Avatar: The Way of Water—ended up being used, so it's fair to say that Avatar: The Seed Bearer could be the final name for film #3.

In fact, in the same interview, Cameron added, “All right, here’s what I’ll tell ya—those titles are among titles that are in consideration. And no final decisions have been made yet.”

Along with The Seed Bearer, the rumored titles for Avatar 4 and Avatar 5 are Avatar: The Tulkun Rider and Avatar: The Quest for Eywa.

Returning cast members from previous Avatar films include:

• Sam Worthington (Jake Sully)
• Zoe Saldaña (Neytiri Sully)
• Sigourney Weaver (Kiri)
• Stephen Lang (Colonel Miles Quaritch)
• Joel David Moore (Dr. Norm Spellman)
• Carol Christine Hilaria Pounder (Mo'at)
• Giovanni Ribisi (Parker Selfridge)
• Kate Winslet (Ronal)
• Cliff Curtis (Tonowari)
• Dileep Rao (Dr. Max Patel)
• Matt Gerald (Corporal Lyle Wainfleet)
• Edie Falco (General Frances Ardmore)
• Brendan Cowell (Captain Mick Scoresby)
• Jemaine Clement (Dr. Ian Garvin)
• Britain Dalton (Lo'ak)
• Trinity Jo-Li Bliss (Tuktirey aka “Tuk”)
• Jack Champion (Miles “Spider” Socorro)
• Bailey Bass (Tsireya aka “Reya”)
• Filip Geljo (Ao'nung)

New cast members include Michelle Yeoh and Oona Chaplin, who will portray Dr. Karina Mogue (a human scientist) and Varang, the leader of the “Ash People,” respectively. Meanwhile, David Thewlis will join the ensemble as a Na'vi member named Peylak.

Principal photography for Avatar 3 began at the same time as Avatar: The Way of Water, back in 2017. And wildly enough, filming for the project actually wrapped in December 2020.

However, although Avatar: The Way of Water wrapped its filming around the same time, post-production took about two years to complete, with the entire film being finished by November 2022 (only a month before it hit theaters in December 2022).

So, we can expect the editing for Avatar 3 to require about the same amount of time, and it may be completed close to its 2025 release date.

Try not to get your Na'vi queue in a twist when you hear this number.

In 2017, the executive chairman of 21st Century Fox, Lachlan Murdoch, announced to Variety that each of the Avatar sequels would have a budget of around $250 million.

However, in November 2022, The Hollywood Reporter stated that The Way of Water was estimated to have cost between $350 million to $400 million, according to close sources. This made the sequel one of the most-expensive movies of all time.

So, it's unclear how much Avatar 3 will end up costing in the end. According to the New Zealand Film Commission, the Avatar sequels (films two and three, to be exact) received $140 million (NZD) in public funding from the New Zealand Screen Production Grant.

Both Avatar 4 and Avatar 5 have been officially announced, with tentative release dates of December 21, 2029 and December 19, 2031. As previously stated, the sequels have rumored titles of Avatar: The Tulkun Rider and Avatar: The Quest for Eywa, but Cameron has noted that these are only possible names for the fourth and fifth installments.

Principal photography for Avatar 4 began in September 2022, to account for the fact that the child actors will be growing up in the period that it will take for the film to be released. However, Avatar 5 is only in pre-production.

If all five movies prove to be successful, there could be even more chapters in the Avatar universe. Cameron has stated that he has ideas for a sixth and seventh film if there happens to be enough demand for them (but we'll have to wait at least a decade before either of those sequels come close to arriving in theaters).

We're counting down the days.

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