James Cameron Says Avatar 3 Might Not Be What Audiences ‘Signed Up For’

Buckle up, Avatar fans! James Cameron says Avatar 3: Fires and Ash may be the boldest Avatar film yet.

In an interview with the U.K.’s Empire Magazine published on Wednesday, Jan. 15, the Academy Award award-winning director opened up about what to expect from the latest installment of the global franchise. He noted that his goal isn’t to replicate what was done in the previous two films but instead to make “brave choices” that might not necessarily be expected.

“It’s a tricky thing,” Cameron, 70, said. “We could be getting high on our own supply here, and everybody who looks at it [the new film] goes, ‘F—, that’s not what I signed up for.’ “

“But if you’re not making brave choices, you’re wasting everybody’s time and money,” he continued, adding, “That alone is not sufficient to create success, but it’s necessary. You’ve got to break the mold every fricking time.”

The filmmaker also revealed that audiences can look forward to high-intensity situations, noting that while they may get taken to “places they won’t expect,” those places “will feel earned.”

“We’ve got some really clever action set-pieces,” he told the outlet. “You can get your blood up in this movie. But what excites me as an artist who recently turned 70 and has kind of done all that stuff is not only the opportunity to get to do it again, but to get to a level of character and intrigue you haven’t seen before in an Avatar movie.”

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In terms of production schedule, Cameron said that the movie is in “strong shape” — especially when compared to his previous Avatar film, Avatar: The Way of Water. 

“We’ve doubled the number of shots finished at this stage of the game than we had on movie two [and] the films are about equal length. So that puts us well ahead of the curve, which is something I’ve never, frankly, experienced before.” 

“We’re getting to the point where we’re actually getting good at this,” he said with a laugh.

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE in December 2023, the Titanic director revealed that his team captured parts of the current film while working on Way of Water — and even captured parts for a future fourth film while working on Fire and Ash.

“We did the capture on three and the live-action photography on three as an intermingled production with [Avatar: The Way of Water], and we even did part of movie four because our young characters are all going to have a big time jump in movie four,” he explained at the time. 

In the same interview, Cameron also confirmed that Kate Winslet will return in the upcoming third installment to reprise her role as Ronal. 

He revealed that Winslet trained with an actual “husband and wife shaman practice” to master techniques she will employ in the new film.

“When you see her [Winslet] doing that purification ritual to try to revive Kitty in the film and some of the stuff that she’s going to do in movie three, that’s based on actual practice,” he said.

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The franchise, known for its unparalleled visuals and intricate world-building, is one of the most successful series of all time. 2009’s Avatar is currently the highest-grossing film ever, earning 2.9 billion worldwide, according to IGN. Avatar: The Way of Water, which was released in 2022, comes in at number three with 2.3 billion.

Avatar 3: Fires and Ash is scheduled to hit theaters on Dec. 19, 2025.