Avatar: The Way of Water

Avatar: The Way of Water is a 2022 American epic science fiction film directed by James Cameron and written by Cameron, Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver. It is the second in the Avatar film series. Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña and Stephen Lang reprise their roles from the first film, with Sigourney Weaver returning in an additional role and Kate Winslet joining the cast. The plot follows Jake Sully, a human-Na'vi hybrid, and his family on the habitable moon Pandora. Hunted by RDA forces, they flee to an oceanic region to seek refuge with the Metkayina clan.

Following the success of Avatar in 2009, two sequels were announced, with the first aiming for a 2014 release. However, the addition of two more sequels—for a total of five films—and the need to develop new technology to film performance capture scenes underwater, led to significant delays. The filming process, which occurred simultaneously with the third film in the franchise, Avatar: Fire and Ash, began in Manhattan Beach, California, on August 15, 2017. Production moved to Wellington, New Zealand the following month, and was completed three years later, in September 2020. With an estimated budget of $350–460 million, Avatar: The Way of Water is one of the most expensive films ever made. It was produced by Cameron's company Lightstorm Entertainment.

After repeated delays in release, Avatar: The Way of Water premiered at the Odeon Leicester Square theater in London on December 6, 2022, and was released in the United States on December 16, by 20th Century Studios. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised the visual effects and technical achievements but criticized the runtime. It was a major box office success, breaking multiple records. It grossed $2.320 billion in its first theatrical run, becoming the highest-grossing film of 2022 and the third-highest-grossing film of all time. Among its many accolades, it was named one of the top-ten films of 2022 by The National Board of Review and the American Film Institute. It was also nominated for four awards at the 95th Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and won for Best Visual Effects. Fire and Ash was released in 2025.

Plot

Sixteen years after the Na'vi repelled the Resources Development Administration (RDA) from Pandora, Jake Sully is chief of the Omatikaya clan. He and his partner Neytiri raise two sons, Neteyam and Lo'ak, a daughter, Tuktirey ("Tuk"), and an adopted daughter, Kiri, who was born from the inert avatar of Dr. Grace Augustine. Miles "Spider" Socorro, son of the deceased Colonel Miles Quaritch, is a frequent playmate of the Sully children, and is being raised by the human scientists who stayed on Pandora.

The RDA returns to colonize Pandora. Among the colonists are Recombinants, Na'vi avatars implanted with memories of deceased human soldiers, including a Recombinant Quaritch. As Jake leads a guerrilla warfare campaign against the RDA, Quaritch searches for Jake's headquarters. Quaritch and his team capture Jake's children, but Jake and Neytiri free them. Quaritch also captures Spider, and recognizes him as his son. After the RDA fails to gain information from Spider, Quaritch decides to spend time with his son to gain his favor. In return, Spider teaches Quaritch about Na'vi culture and language.

Knowing that Spider's knowledge could lead Quaritch to the Omatikaya, Jake and his family leave their clan and relocate to Pandora's eastern sea, where they are granted asylum by the aquatic Metkayina clan. The Sully family begins assimilating into the clan by learning their ways, although Jake's children have conflicts with the sons of Tonowari, the Metkayina chief. Lo'ak befriends Tsireya, Tonowari's daughter.

Tonowari's son Aonung and his friends entice Lo'ak to join a hunting trip, but strand him in a dangerous part of the sea. Lo'ak is saved from a shark-like predator by Payakan, who is a Tulkun—a highly intelligent whale-like creature. Lo'ak bonds with Payakan, and learns that he has been exiled by the other Tulkun. Kiri connects to the Metkayina's underwater Spirit Tree and meets her mother Grace in a vision, but suffers a seizure and nearly drowns. Jake summons his scientist friends Norm Spellman and Max Patel for help; they diagnose Kiri with epilepsy, warning that she may die if she links with the Spirit Tree again.

Quaritch tracks Norm and Max's aircraft to the Metkayina's archipelago. He commandeers a ship which is hunting the Tulkun, and interrogates the Na'vi in the archipelago. After the Na'vi fail to give him information about Jake, he burns their dwellings. Meanwhile, Lo'ak mentally links with Payakan and learns that he was exiled because he attacked humans who killed his mother, a violation of the Tulkun vow of pacifism.

Aware that the Metkayina have a spiritual bond with the Tulkun, Quaritch attempts to draw Jake out by ordering the ship's captain to hunt Tulkun close to Na'vi villages. When the Metkayina learn of the Tulkun killings, Lo'ak goes to warn Payakan, accompanied by several other children. They find that Payakan as been tagged for capture by the RDA. They help him escape, but are caught by Quaritch's team. Jake, Neytiri, and the Metkayina pursue Quaritch, who demands that Jake surrender himself in exchange for his children. Before Jake reaches the ship, Payakan attacks it, sparking a battle between the Metkayina and Quaritch's forces. Spider sabotages the RDA vessel, while Neteyam rescues Lo'ak, Tsireya, and Spider. During their escape, Neteyam is fatally shot.

Enraged by Neteyam's death, Jake and Neytiri attack Quaritch's crew, seeking to rescue Kiri and Tuk. After Jake frees Tuk, Quaritch threatens to kill Kiri, but he releases her when Neytiri threatens to kill Spider. After a tense skirmish, Jake strangles Quaritch unconscious. Jake is rescued from the sinking ship by Lo'ak and Payakan, while Kiri saves Neytiri and Tuk. Spider saves Quaritch from drowning but refuses to stay with him.

After Neteyam's funeral, Jake informs Tonowari of his decision to leave the Metkayina, but Tonowari declares Jake's family part of the clan and welcomes them to stay. Jake realizes he cannot keep running from Quaritch and the RDA, and must stand and fight instead.