Avatar 2: Why You Should Care, Even if You Think Avatar Sucks
2,496Everybody may have seen the original 2009 Avatar, but that doesn’t mean James Cameron’s sci-fi epic was for everyone, and in spite of its massive box office success, its detractors and critics seem more numerous than its hardcore fans. The long-awaited 2022 sequel Avatar 2, officially “Avatar: The Way of Water” doesn’t seem to have the same amount of hype as you’d see ahead of the latest installment in another blockbuster franchise like Marvel, Star Wars, DC, Fast & Furious - and while a longer wait between installments often means more excitement, it's possible the thirteen-year wait has made moviegoers lukewarm on a return to the planet Pandora. That said, there’s a damn good reason to give this movie the benefit of the doubt: between Aliens and Terminator 2: Judgment Day, James Cameron’s track record for sequels is unmatched. And hey, the last two movies he made about stuff happening in the water, Titanic and The Abyss, weren’t too bad either. So, even if you don’t care about Jake Sully (that’s Sam Worthington’s character), Neytiri (Zoe Saldana’s), and the rest of the Na’vi denizens of the frontiers of Pandora (whose ranks now include Sigourney Weaver, playing a Na’vi teenager, and Kate Winslett) you can’t say you’re not at least a little bit curious what one of the 20th century’s most influential filmmakers has been doing for a good chunk of the 21st. Regardless of how good (or bad) James Cameron’s epic is, or how much money it rakes in, or whether we ever actually get Avatar 3, Avatar 4, and Avatar 5 (or Avatar 6 and Avatar 7, which Cameron apparently has ideas for) the fact that Avatar 2 exists is a fascinating anomaly in modern filmmaking. The Avatar 2 trailer got plenty of views, but with a 3-hour and 12-minute run time, we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg - and it probably looks a lot better in IMAX 3D. To make Avatar 2, Cameron had to literally figure out The Way of Water in order to do motion-capture with his actors holding their breath underwater while performing in a 900,000-gallon tank. James Cameron interviews are always interesting on some level, but after hearing the filmmaker talk about what’s gone into this sequel - and potentially the 2-6 Avatar sequels after this one - it’ll be fascinating to finally see for ourselves.