A new LEGO set rebuilds the world of Avatar’s Pandora in meticulous and vibrant detail. Though Avatar was released back in 2009, the film has been in the news a lot lately in advance of its sequel Avatar: The Way of Water. The Way of Water is set to be released in December and will be directed by James Cameron, who also directed the first film. Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana will return to the cast, to be joined by Kate Winslet, Oona Chaplin, Jemaine Clement, and Everything Everywhere All at Once’s Michelle Yeoh.
When Avatar initially hit theaters, Cameron astonished the world with the film’s groundbreaking CGI. He created the fictional planet of Pandora, home to the Na'vi, a race of blue human-like people. The Na'vi themselves were intricately designed from the texture of their skin to their thick braids, but the surrounding environs of Pandora were perhaps even more dazzling to viewers, including multitudinous polychromatic species of plants and animals. The Way of Water producer Jon Landau recently explained equally exciting plans for some of the water-traveling species that will inhabit the oceans of Pandora in the upcoming sequel.
The original world of Pandora is depicted in LEGO’s new Avatar-based brick set. According to the listing on the official LEGO website, this set will depict the Toruk Makto & Tree of Souls. The set will feature the weeping-willow-like tree from the first film as its centerpiece, alongside the giant leonopteryx flying creature. The set also features four minifigures, though it is yet unclear which characters those figures will represent. The set will include 1,212 pieces and retail for $139.99. It is scheduled to release on October 1, a little over two months before The Way of Water hits theaters.
Previously, rumors suggested that a LEGO Avatar theme might be announced at this weekend’s LEGO Con 2022. Perhaps this could still happen, as further LEGO Avatar worlds could certainly be extracted from the expansive universe that Cameron and his team have crafted within Pandora. This LEGO set, however, is still an exciting release as it focuses on one of the most visually stunning and plot-vital elements of the first Avatar film. The Tree of Souls is where Grace (played by Sigourney Weaver) was laid to rest in the first film. It is a connection point between the Na'vi and their dead, and also a point of attack for Miles Quaritch and his team, embodying a dual place of exploitation and communion.
It is fascinating to see such a visually powerful symbolic image from Avatar be depicted on the small scale with this LEGO set. The set will further hype up viewers for the already-anticipated second Avatar film. Whether or not more LEGO Avatar collaborations are revealed, this merchandise is already enough to keep pushing more new fans into theaters when Avatar: The Way of the Water graces the big screen come December.
Source: LEGO