TOvatar 2: The way of the water out in theaters on Wednesday 14 December. The film is the sequel to Avatars2009 movie best-grossing in the history of cinema (almost 3 billion dollars, equal to about 2.8 billion euros) signed by James Cameron (director of Titanic, third most watched film of all time. Foreseen 3 more sequels between 2024 and 2028. But how long does it last and what are the characteristics and curiosities of the film?
Avatars 2: how long does it last?
Three and a quarter hours (how much Titanic, one of the longest ever). A lot compared to any other film, a lot even compared to the previous one Avatars – which lasted two hours and a quarter. But the producers and director guarantee that the length will not weigh. It will be an experience that will suck the viewer into a breathtaking dimension.
3D without glasses?
James Cameron had hypothesized a 3D film to be seen without glasses, but it still seems early for such a technology. And producer Jon Landau cut it short by saying: «We don’t want to abandon 3D technology. When you go to the beach, goggles are part of the experience. If I wear 3D glasses to the cinema, my experience changes dramatically. They are an integral part of the film.”
Avatars 2: the plot
We are over ten years after the events narrated in the first Avatars. At the center of it all is the Sully familycomposed by Jake (Sam Worthington), the human who preferred to live as an Avatar, and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana), the blue alien protagonist of the first film. Now the two are related and have five children. Three biological: Neteyam (Jamie Flatters), Lo’ak (Britain Dalton) and Tuk (Trinity Bliss). And two adopted: Miles Socorro (Jack Champion) and Kiri who is played by Sigourney Weaver (protagonist of the first film, but with a different role).
Avatar 2: The Water Way. (20th Century Studios)
The battles between Avatar and the Rda return in this sequelland company that is still ready to conduct its mining operations on Pandora, fictional planet where the Avatars live and where is the family Sully along with the other Na’vi (the humanoids who manage to survive on Pandora, where there is a toxic atmosphere for humans).
THE Sully are forced to face dangers to survive and come to seek refuge in the ocean, thinking it’s a safe place. Here, near the coral reef, they find the Metkayina, clan that populates the aquatic world. But these, instead of being allies, turn out to be yet another trap to escape from. Between battles, unexpected events and special effects, the suspense is total.
Which character does Kate Winslet play?
In Avatars 2 we find new characters, among which stands out that of Ronal, played by Kate Winslet (former protagonist of Titanic). Of this character, for now, we know which is one of the creatures that inhabit the ocean and has large wings. The actress, to immerse herself in this part, she managed to stay underwater for seven minutes and 14 seconds, breaking the record set so far by Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation who, in 2015, had remained freediving for six minutes.
Avatars 2: the other characters and the cast
But in the sequel we find most of the characters from the first film. As we said, there is Jake always played by Sam Worthington: he was the disabled marine who entered the Avatar program in the service of the Rda to steal secrets about the blue creatures. But then, by dint of getting to know them, he fell in love with them, choosing to give up his human life, preferring to become an Avatar.
Let’s find Neytiri (Zoe Saldana), Na’vi of the Omaticaya tribe, daughter of the leader Avatar. And there is Dr. Spellman (Joel David Moore), in the first film, a scientist linked to the Rda but who supported Jake in his fight against humans. He was one of the select few humans to remain on Pandora at the end of the first Avatars, for this reason we also find it in the sequel. The same thing happens to the Doctor Max Patel (interpreted by Dileep Rao), a scientist who allowed human minds to “transfer” into their Avatars.
Come back Parker Selfridge (Giovanni Ribisi), in the first movie head of the Rda, strongly interested in extracting the mineral reserves of unobtanium, found under the sacred tree of the Na’vi. Now we expect to see it in a less “business” guise. And there is too Mo’at performed by Cch poundermother of Neytiri, a wise and benevolent Avatar.
Kate Winslet, Sigourney Weaver and Zoe Saldana at the London premiere of “Avatar 2”. (20th Century Studios)
Come back ruthless Colonel Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang), one of the fiercest and fiercest enemies of the Avatars: in the first film he turns out to be dead, but through the new one recombinant program some humans’ minds are revealed to have been transferred into Na’vi bodies. This is what allows the Colonel to still be there. For the same reason we find Corporal Lyle wainfleet (Matt Gerald), mercenary of the Rda, loyal to Colonel Quaritch: he too seems dead in the first film, but here we see him again thanks to the “recombinant” program.
Sigourney Weaver is now a 14-year-old teenager
In the first movie it was the combative Dr. Grace Augustine dying because his consciousness could not be transferred into the Na’vi body. Now the actress, who turned 73 in October, reappears in the sequel in the role of a 14-year-old teenager. It is indeed Kiri, adopted daughter of Jake and Neytiri.
It is possible that in this sequel there are connections between Kiri and Dr. Augustine, since his DNA and mind may have remained preserved in the Tree of Na’vi life.
Sigourney Weaver and James Cameron. (20th Century Studios)
Box office: aiming for (at least) 2 billion dollars in box office
The cost is around 250 million dollars. Making of Avatar 2 the most expensive film in the history of cinema. To be convenient it must bring in at least two billion dollars (1.89 billion euros). Anything lower will be considered a failure. Cameron himself said so when he called this sequel “the worst business model in the history of cinema”.
But this goal seems easily achievable, at least according to forecasts. The site Box officeconsidering only the first weekend of release in the United States, continues to raise the box office: if in November he spoke of a figure between 150 and 180 million dollars, has now come to assume a collection between 167 and 192 million dollars. Very close to the $200 million other analysts were talking about from the outset.
Ultimately, the sequel could bring in a total gross of more than $860 million. But only considering the American market. In fact, they go to this figure added receipts from the rest of the world, in which China also appears, booming as viewings at the cinema.
Why a sequel 13 years later?
To explain why Avatars 2 arrives 13 years after the first film was James Cameron himself: «First of all I participated in expeditions in the deep ocean. Then, when we seriously considered the sequel idea, we worked on four scripts at the same time», said the director referring to the other three sequels due out between 2024 and 2028. «It took a couple of years”. Then came the pandemic which delayed everything.
But the intention, this time, is to be on the market without making the subsequent sequels wait too long. Only a couple of years on film. Avatars 3 in fact it is already in the post-production phase, and is expected in theaters for December 20, 2024. Avatars 4 for December 2026. And the last one, Avatars 5, for December 2028.
iO Woman © REPRODUCTION RESERVED