As Avatar: Fire and Ash runs towards a $350 million dollar opening weekend, Disney has released a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the film. The film is the third in James Cameron’s blockbuster franchise, which began with the original Avatar in 2009.
Behind the Scenes
In Disney’s behind the scenes look, there is a series of short clips with the actors discussing the film and the work they put into it. Each one provides an insight into the power dynamics and shifting relationships in this latest installment after the last film, Avatar: The Way of Water, which was released in 2022.
Sam Worthington, for example, said in his interview with the company that his character Jake Sully/Toruk Makto and his wife Neytiri are going “back to their default. Neytiri goes back to Eywa [the All-Mother of Pandora] and Jake goes back to soldiering. They’re both just trying to find a path through.”
In her interview, Zoe Saldaña expands upon the difficulties her character Neytiri is navigating in the new film. She explained that Neytiri’s grief is making her lose her sense of purpose, and it’s harming her interpersonal relationships.
That sense of loss is reflected in other characters throughout the film as well, including Varang, a new character in the Avatar universe. Varang is a shaman from the Mangkwan Clan played by Oona Chaplin. She and her people are mourning the loss of their Hometree, which was the victim of a volcanic eruption.
“Varang comes from a place that has been devastated by natural disaster,” Chaplin told Disney. “Her people have suffered this great trauma. She figured out a way to harness the power of that pain and grief and desperation and really turn it into her strength. So, really, her weakness is her strength, and that gives her a very interesting relationship with fear and power. Very early on, Jim [Cameron] said to me, ‘Everything that makes her afraid — anywhere she sees that there’s power — she goes right for it, and she tries to destroy it.”
Get more behind-the-scenes scoops from the performers and see the video interviews for yourself on The Walt Disney Company website.
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