A new set photo from James Cameron’s upcoming Avatar sequel shows humans fighting on Pandora. The verdant planet was initially seen in the first installment of Cameron’s 2009’s blockbuster and will reportedly feature heavily in Avatar 2.

Production on the highly anticipated follow up has been on rocky ground over the past year, thanks to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The New Zealand-based production was recently given the all-clear to resume work, and since then, fans have been receiving more and more information on how things are going. However groundbreaking the original Avatar film was upon its release, the four upcoming sequels look set to revolutionize filmmaking once again. One of the reasons Cameron took so long to begin production on the sequels was that he wanted to master the usage of CGI with underwater footage. If the recent on-set photos are any indication, Avatar 2 will have some exciting underwater scenes.

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In addition to these underwater scenes, fans have now been allowed to get a glimpse at some of the action set to take place on land. A new photo from the official Instagram account of Avatar 2 producer Jon Landau shows a pretty fierce-looking gun battle taking place on Pandora. Clearly, the battle for Pandora shows no signs of slowing in the sequel, and if anything, the upcoming Avatar films will intensify it to the degree that few fans could have anticipated. In addition to the Pandora firefight in the image below, fans can also check out 2nd unit director Garrett Warren giving stuntman Steve Brown some advice before the next take:

There can hardly be any question that whatever Avatar 2 is set to bring to audiences will amplify everything seen in the first film. The six delays that have pushed the final product back to a 2022 release date have been a hard pill for eager fans to swallow, but news that even Cameron is impressed with how amazing the film looks so far goes a long way in keeping anticipation high. Previous reports have stated that much of Avatar 2 will take place underwater, which is truly exciting. Still, as the above photo indicates, the return of Colonel Miles Quaritch will likely be a significant factor in elevating warfare on Pandora. Whether underwater or on land, Avatar 2’s battles are sure to include some of the most stunning and heavy-duty armaments seen onscreen in a long time.

Some fans feel that the original Avatar film hasn’t aged all that well and that today’s audiences aren’t going to be interested in four more Avatar sequels. But this sort of approach is far too skeptical, far too soon. Cameron is one of the few filmmakers alive who can make a return to the world of blockbusters look effortless. Few critics could have expected Aliens to take things to such new heights after the massive success of Alien – ditto with Terminator 2 after Terminator rocked audiences. This is where Cameron’s expertise lies, and Avatar 2 is certainly looking strong already.

Next: Avatar 2's Story Was Set Up In An Avatar Deleted Scene

Source: Jon Landau via Instagram

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