James Cameron’s Avatar (2009), is recognized as one of the highest grossing movies of all time, with a box office revenue of $2.922 billion dollars.

In anticipation of the upcoming release of a sequel to the original, the epic science fiction movie was back in cinemas for a short period of time during the month of September.  

The film is set in the year 2154, in the moon of Pandora belonging to a planetary system 4.37 light-years away from Earth. The Earth-like moon is inhabited by the humanoid species, Na’vi. The natural atmospheric components of Pandora make it hard to breathe for humans, which is why they must wear specialized gear whenever exposed to air.

The story follows Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), who served with the Marine Corps but was left paralyzed from the waist down after suffering an injury. Jake’s twin brother, Tom Sully, was involved with a biogenetic program concerning remote controlled Na’vi hybrids, in order to better explore the satellite. Tom Sully was murdered a week before he left for Pandora, consequently, Jake Sully agreed to carry out the program in his place, as they shared identical DNA, he is able to bond and control the hybrid Na’vi. 

The conflict of the movie is centered around the human ambition of gathering a rare mineral produced in Pandora called “unobtainium.”

Jake Sully is tasked with gaining the trust of the natives and later convincing them to relocate, as their “Hometree” is right above the largest unobtainium reserve. Jake Sully initially cooperates, but as he gets to know and live like the Na’vi, he becomes fond of the community and refuses to support human activity.

The film concludes with a battle between the humans and the Na’vi, consisting of both airborne and ground confrontations. The Na’vi will eventually turn out victorious; they will force humans to return to Earth, and only allow humans who helped the Na’vi to stay.

Jake Sully will decide to permanently transfer his consciousness from his human body to his Avatar body, and be received as a part of Pandora forever. 

Two sequels to this first movie have been confirmed. Avatar: The Way of Water (December of 2022) is the second delivery of the franchise, and Avatar 3 is confirmed to have completed primary filming and is set to release in December, 2024. 

Avatar: The Way of Water will take place more than a decade after the events of the first film. According to 20th Century Studios, the sequel will be about “the Sully family, the trouble that follows them, the lengths they go to keep each other safe, the battles they fight to stay alive, and the tragedies they endure” 

Avatar: The Way of Water will be released in theaters on December 16, 2022. The premise to the movie suggests that this major motion picture will not disappoint, and has potential to live up to its original success.