A new image from Avatar 2 reveals reef-dwelling Na’vi and other underwater Pandoran creatures. James Cameron is set to revisit the moon of Pandora over ten years after the original Avatar broke box office records while pushing the art of performance-capture to never-before-seen extremes.
Of course considering who Cameron is it’s no surprise that the technological envelope will be pushed again with Avatar 2. In the new movie, set 14 years after the original, heroes Jake (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) are raising a family when the evil human RDA returns to again disrupt their peaceful existence. Seeking a safe haven, Jake and Neytiri flee with their children to a Pandoran reef where a Na’vi tribe called the Metkayina live. As explained by Avatar producer Jon Landau in a recent interview, moving to this new environment makes Jake and Neytiri “fish out of water both culturally and just environmentally.”
Up till now Avatar fans have only been able to imagine what this new ocean environment on Pandora might look like. But now thanks to EW an image has finally been released showing what Cameron has in store for fans as he not only revisits Avatar but raises the stakes by going beneath the waves to explore a whole new alien environment. See the image in the space below:
“Bora Bora on steroids” is how Landau describes this ocean-side Pandoran world and indeed the new image shows the Metkayina living in apparent harmony with nature in what looks to be a virtual paradise (the giant dinosaur-looking fish doesn’t even seem to mind being picked out of the water and petted by a Na’vi child). Looking closely at the image, it’s possible to make out some interesting details about the Metkayina that differentiate them from the forest-dwelling Na’vi, including webbing on their arms and flattened tails (that presumably help them swim). The image itself is clearly not from the finished film but is most likely a pre-render done before actual shooting.
Though this is obviously a peaceful and harmonious place at the time depicted in the image, it’s safe to assume that once humans inevitably show up, things will take a turn for the worse just as they did when the RDA first discovered Pandora and went to war against the peace-loving Na’vi. Alongside the movie’s environmental themes, Avatar 2 will also explore family as it introduces a new generation of characters who will carry the story forward. Of course there’s a lot of story to tell as Cameron plans on releasing four more Avatar films before he’s finished. At least going by this one new image, Avatar 2 will have a lot that’s familiar alongside a lot that is new.
Source: EW
