Avatar 3 2k6oj Avatar 4 Scenes Already Shot to Avoid ‘Stranger Things Effect,’ James Cameron Reveals

The multi-year project had to be covered in a single production, in order to avoid child actors from inevitably growing out. 1i4116

Written by Rahul Chettiyar, Edited by Akhil Arora, Siddharth Suvarna | Updated: 23 December 2022 15:08 IST

Photo Credit: 20th Century Studios 5xq5p

Jack Champion as Miles “Spider” Socorro in Avatar: The Way of Water

Highlights

Jack Champion was 14 when he started filming Avatar 2, is now 18
Production continuously switched between the three films
Avatar: The Way of Water released December 16 in theatres

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As Avatar: The Way of Water rides waves across theatres, director James Cameron has now coined a new phrase called “the Stranger Things effect.” Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, the filmmaker claimed that certain footage for Avatar 3 and Avatar 4 was shot in tandem with the second Avatar film, in order to avoid the child actors from inevitably growing up, and showing signs of ageing. The multi-year project had to be covered in a single production, “Otherwise, you get — and I love Stranger Things — but you get the Stranger Things effect where they're supposed to still be in high school [but] they look like they're 27,” Cameron said.

While it was easy for leads Avatar 4.

Avatar: The Way of Water Review: James Cameron Gives Us the Biggest ‘Video Game Movie' Ever

Sure, performance capture could turn returning star Stranger Things, where the male leads' voices got deeper with each season. Cameron wanted to avoid that, and built on the Pandoran arc as quickly as possible, whilst leaving out a few unanswered questions at the end of each entry. “You can call it sequel bait, but I'm not trying to justify a sequel,” Cameron said in the interview. “We've already shot the other d--n movie. I don't have to sell it to anybody.”

Speaking to end the franchise with a trilogy if Avatar 2 underperformed.

In its first week, Avatar: The Way of Water has now sured the suggested that the film has to become “the third or fourth highest-grossing film in history, to break even."

The notion of filming three films back-to-back never seemed daunting to Saldaña, at least from a plot and thematic standpoint. “We did read-throughs, we discussed extensively where we were, we defined those beats that distinguished [Avatar] 2 from 3,” she told EW. “So from where I was standing, I never felt that it was uncomfortable or anything, but that just has to do with the amount of time that we took in preparation for this. Jim makes you a part of the whole process and hears you. Every need that you have, he takes great attention to that detail and tries to the best of his ability to accommodate and incorporate your input.”

Avatar: The Way of Water is now playing in theatres in India, in English, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu. Avatar 3 is slated to release in December 2026.

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Avatar: The Way of Water h445o

Release Date 16 December 2022
Language English
Genre Sci-Fi
Cast
Zoe Saldaña, Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Cliff Curtis, Joel David Moore, CCH Pounder, Edie Falco, Jemaine Clement, Kate Winslet, Jamie Flatters, Britain Dalton, Trinity Bliss, Bailey Bass, Filip Geljo, Duane Evans Jr., Giovanni Ribisi, Dileep Rao, Matt Gerald, Jack Champion, Brendan Cowell, Michelle Yeoh, Oona Chaplin, CJ Jones, Vin Diesel
Director
James Cameron
Producer
James Cameron, Jon Landau

Avatar: Fire and Ash 556250

Release Date 19 December 2025
Language English
Genre Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Cast
Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Stephen Lang, Sigourney Weaver, CCH Pounder, Giovanni Ribisi, Cliff Curtis, Edie Falco, Jemaine Clement, Michelle Yeoh, David Thewlis, Oona Chaplin
Director
James Cameron
Producer
James Cameron, Jon Landau

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