Avatar 2: It Came 2ru

If you, like most of the country, have not seen James Cameron’s Avatar since it came out in 2009, it’s time to brush up on the specifics of Pandora and the Na’vi. Avatar 2 is finally coming to theaters after several delays (both COVID and Cameron-inflicted), and footage from the film was just shown for the first time at CinemaCon.

The official title of what is sure to be Cameron’s magnum opus is Avatar: The Way of Water. An interesting title, mostly because Cameron’s ex-wife Kathryn Bigelow has a movie called The Weight of Water. Is it intentional? Probably not, but it’s fun to imagine it as retribution for her winning Best Director and Best Picture for The Hurt Locker at the Oscars the year that Avatar was nominated.

Variety described the footage shown at CinemaCon as “dazzling.” The trade mag wrote: “exhibitors were immersed into different regions across the dazzling world of Pandora through sweeping visuals of the planet’s crystal blue oceans and lakes.” Okay, sounds cool, but did they also see footage of Na’vi interacting with different kinds of wildlife, some of which would fly toward the audience thanks to 3-D technology?

“The footage also shows the local tribe of Na’vi interacting with various species resembling whales and pelicans, some of which flew through the screen and into audience member’s faces thanks to the three-dimensional technology.”

Sick.

What more could you need to know to make you excited for this movie? Did you know that while filming it Kate Winslet held her breath underwater for over seven minutes? Did you know she plays a “water person” named “Ronal.” If that doesn’t hook you, then I don’t know what will.