Given the massive success of the sequel, many people are wondering why Avatar: The Way of Water took so long to hit theaters. Avatar was released in 2009, not only being nominated for Best Picture but also eventually becoming the highest-grossing movie of all time. Its success seemed to guarantee more to come and James Cameron always talked about an extensive franchise within Pandora and the world of the Na'vi, yet 13 years passed before Avatar 2 was finally released. So why did Avatar 2 take so long?
With Avatar 2 releasing on streaming, people will be revisiting the blockbuster or checking it out for the first time. With the long wait to finally see it, it is hard to believe Avatar 2 is actually available to watch at home. Some doubted the movie would actually happen at all with multiple delays and questions about the lasting impact of the original. While Avatar 2's box office success has silenced many of those doubters, it was still a surprisingly long wait to finally see the movie hit theaters.
Avatar 2's Incredibly Long Production Journey Explained
When James Cameron first began talking about more movies in this world, few could have guessed how long between Avatar and Avatar 2 fans would actually have to wait. Avatar's sci-fi epic that soon became the highest-grossing film of all time, Avatar was considered a game-changer in 2009, one that lay the foundations for the special effects-heavy franchise blockbusters of today. Quickly after that flush of success – with a whopping $2.788bn in the bank – Cameron and Fox announced two sequels, which is hardly surprising given Cameron had been talking about plans to make the film a franchise if the first one was successful enough all the way back in 2006.
That sequel number soon expanded to four, but filming on the projects themselves was slow to happen. Shooting days were set, then delayed repeatedly. Now, however, the first of the four Avatar sequels is finally out, despite all the Way of Water delays. Originally scheduled for 2014 and 2015, Avatar 2 and Avatar 3's release dates were then changed to December 2020 and 2021 before more Way of Water delays, changing the date to December 2022 and December 2024, respectively.
Avatar 2 features Jake and Ney'tiri's family and explore different regions of Pandora, with a special focus on a location that exists underwater. Avatar 4 and Avatar 5 are currently scheduled for theatrical release in December 2026 and December 2028, respectively. After 13 years, the Avatar sequels all the way up to Avatar 5 are finally coming, but they're incredibly late in the game. At over a decade between films, entire franchises like The Hunger Games and Fantastic Beasts ran their course between the release of Avatar and Avatar 2. However, why Avatar 2 took so long was because of the massive undertaking of the production.
Avatar 2 Arrived Over 10 Years After Avatar So Cameron Could Get It Right
Avatar 2's long-anticipated trailer offered several key pieces of information about the sequel, including its once-again groundbreaking CGI. It's been no secret that James Cameron's sequel would make heavy use of pioneering underwater filming technology. This contributed to why Avatar 2 took so long to make, a necessary endeavor since Avatar: The Way of Water introduced a new Na'vi tribe, the Metkayina, who live around and in Pandora's ocean. That's not the only reason over a decade passed between Avatar and Avatar 2 though.
There were several causes, but the main one is simple — James Cameron didn't rush. The Avatar franchise has always been known as a deeply personal project for Cameron, and it's possible the pentalogy will be his magnum opus by the time it's complete. As well as waiting for technology to catch up to his vision, James Cameron also made sure the story for The Way of Water solidified. Cameron's not been shy about the fact he has an arc planned for all five Avatar movies. Cooking up such a long multi-movie narrative takes time, and James Cameron is more than aware of just how liable franchises are to fail when stories are constructed on an installment-by-installment basis.
James Cameron Is No Stranger To Difficult Second Movies
Whether audiences even want more Avatar movies has been asked over the years, but specifically on the industry level, the sheer amount of Way of Water delays that have happened prior to getting Avatar 2 released was striking. Filmmaking is a business that lives or dies on being able to monopolize popular interest, and audiences can be notoriously fickle. Creatives can risk rushing out a product to meet that fleeting demand and making a bad movie, or they can take their time and miss the buzz altogether. These are issues that Fox may have worried about when it came to their Avatar hopes, and with a studio change and lifespan extension via theme parks, that's only become more pointed with time.
Yet James Cameron has always managed to soar over the shop talk of mere studios and executives. As one of the few directors in the industry who can essentially do whatever he wants, he decided to take his time with the seemingly risky Avatar franchise move and not be rushed by distributor demands or what is considered the cool thing of the day, explaining why Avatar 2 took so long. Audiences are used to getting several films and TV shows a year from their favorite franchise, so Cameron being so deliberately slow with his makes it something of an anomaly in Hollywood.
Of course, that's always been the case. Whether it was Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Titanic, or the original Avatar, Cameron's passion projects have always been treated as suspect by Hollywood - expensive follies destined to bomb. Yet each time, he's proven that wrong, delivering revered crowd-pleasers that rank as some of the biggest movies ever and muscle into serious awards discussion. Once again shown with Avatar 2, it seems betting against James Cameron is never wise.
James Cameron Needed To Perfect Underwater CGI
Plainly, the major reason why Avatar 2 took so long is the long pre-production state, a result of Cameron's commitment to the special effects that set Avatar apart from other films of its time to begin with. A noted perfectionist, he made no qualms about taking his time and waiting for the technology to catch up to his vision.
In 2011, Cameron had talked about wanting to film the Avatar sequels in a higher frame rate, something that didn't become mainstream in cinema until Peter Jackson made The Hobbit trilogy (and quickly disappeared after). By 2016, he was talking up the possibility of shooting Avatar 2 for a non-glasses form of 3D, although he later admitted that the technology wasn't there yet.
Nowadays, the kind of effects that seemed unique in 2009 are regular features of blockbuster cinema, but that only inspired Cameron to go further, even if it meant waiting for several more years. In this case, the director's area of choice was water. Underwater settings have always fascinated Cameron – The Abyss and Titanic show it explicitly, backed up by his real-life deep-sea adventures – and since the very early days of the Avatar sequels that's where he stated Avatar 2 would be set.
Underwater effects have always been tricky to replicate in any form - even shooting in-camera has its limitations — let alone with motion capture, leading to major updates needed. But Cameron has finally worked out Avatar 2's underwater filming technology, as the breathtaking movie clearly shows.
Writing Four Avatar Sequels Extended Development
The delay wasn't just for Avatar 2. Over the years of that film's development, it became intertwined with more and more movies, to the point where Cameron has a clear plan all the way up to Avatar 5 in 2028 (delayed from 2025). That's another key reason; that intricate planning for the franchise included Cameron wanting to have the scripts for all four parts finished and ready for shooting before production began.
The true game plan is still unclear, but based on comments made by Cameron in an interview (via Vanity Fair), each Avatar sequel is intrinsically linked to the others:
"The scripts took four years. You can call that a delay, but it’s not really a delay because from the time we pushed the button to really go make the movies [until now], we’re clicking along perfectly. We’re doing very well because of all the time that we had to develop the system and the pipeline and all that. We weren’t wasting time, we were putting it into tech development and design. So when all the scripts were approved, everything was designed. Every character, every creature, every setting."
It’s surprisingly common for big franchises to enter back-to-back shooting schedules without completed scripts in a bid to get the movies out as fast as possible. The second and third movies in Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean series were filmed back-to-back and much was made about the fact that the screenwriters were often finishing the script mere days before scenes were filmed. Given the criticism over the muddled and incomplete the storytelling in those films, it’s no wonder that Cameron wasn't willing to be rushed on the basic writing level until he got the story and development to the point where he felt it was authentic to what he was trying to convey.
The Way Of Water Made The Wait Worth It
Regardless of why Avatar 2 took so long, the wait was worth it. In short: Avatar: The Way of Water looks incredible. The masterful CGI alone makes the long overdue movie worth the wait, and both audiences and critics have been awed by it on the big screen. James Cameron takes audiences to a world beyond imagination in Avatar 2, and this definitely justifies some of the Way of Water delays. Pandora has never looked better, and watchers are introduced to an entirely new tribe of Na'vi with the Metkayina.
Though Avatar didn't come out when CGI was in its infancy, it's unclear if James Cameron could've made a sequel of this stature back in 2013 before advancements in technology were made. The aquatic Metkyina live in a setting that simply wouldn't have been as immersive with early 2010s-CGI. In addition, the extra time gave studios a longer period to work on the story. While amazing CGI has secured Avatar's place as a near-unparalleled cinematic spectacle, the narrative was criticized as feeling a little lackluster. Avatar 2's positive reviews praise a more emotionally connected movie than simply the impressive CGI of the first.
Way Of Water's Success Has Ensured A Shorter Wait For Avatar 3
Though there was good reasoning behind why Avatar 2 took so long, fans will not have to endure a 13-year wait for the upcoming Avatar 3. The release date for the next sequel is currently set for December 20, 2024. While it is possible that release date could change due to unforeseen circumstances, the sequel is already very much on the way. James Cameron confirmed Avatar 2's box office pushed the sequels ahead, jokingly saying, "looks like I can’t wiggle out of this, I’m gonna have to do these other these other sequels."
However, more importantly, Cameron is not starting from scratch as he did with Avatar 2. Instead, not only has he mapped out the sequels and their story arc, but Cameron confirmed that filming for Avatar 3 is already complete and the post-production is underway. Even if there are delays, Avatar 3 is well along its way to theaters. He also confirmed that Avatar 4 and Avatar 5 have also been written and Avatar 4 is also partially filmed. While the franchise will not conclude until 2028, there will be no long wait like there was for Avatar 2.
