Avatar 2's Stephen Lang Hints At The Drama And Tragedy To Come In The Saga
"Avatar: The Way of Water" has been 13 years in the making. And writer/director James Cameron has spent that time well, developing not only the technology to bring the sequel to life but creating a whole new setting for Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and his family to adapt to.
Whereas in 2009's "Avatar," we mostly see a Na'vi clan acclimated to the forest, this time around, we become acquainted with the Metkayina clan of Na'vi, who have settled along the coast. Rather than climbing vines, they are more used to swimming for extended periods of time, having mastered the art of holding their breath (something stars Kate Winslet and Sigourney Weaver know all too well). The Metkayina also have different creatures they can bond to in order to ride around on the waves.
The introduction of the Metkayina opens up a whole new world for audiences who want to go back to Pandora again and again. It also suggests there are even more clans out there waiting to meet Jake. And during a recent interview appearance, that's precisely what Stephen Lang, who plays Colonel Quaritch, teased to come in the future of "Avatar" movies.
Pandora is just as rich and diverse as our own world
Pandora is an entire planet, and in the first "Avatar," we only had the chance to explore a small segment of that planet. In "Avatar: The Way of Water," the world opens up a bit more, but there's still plenty out there for audiences to witness. That's why it shouldn't come as a surprise when Stephen Lang went on "Good Morning America" to talk about the future of the franchise. During his appearance, he teased, "In 'Avatar: The Way of Water,' the world of Pandora is expanded, so we see other environments, other clans, a whole new raft of creatures, and you can expect that in every subsequent addition as well."
As a whole planet, it would make sense for Pandora to consist of many different biomes where the Na'vi in each other has grown accustomed to their respective biome in unique ways, much like the Metkayina are a lighter shade of blue and have longer tails than the Na'vi we met in the first "Avatar." Lang goes on to say, "It's a big world, Pandora. And it's every bit of diverse as our own world. And every bit as exotic. And so that's what we're going to be seeing. And the saga of the characters is just going to deepen and get more dramatic, in some cases more tragic, and more beautiful, I think."
It'll be interesting to see how these other clans play out in the narrative of "Avatar" sequels. Jake and his family met the Metkayina while fleeing their original tribe to protect them. Could Jake meet more Na'vi the same way? Only time will tell.
James Cameron wants Avatar sequels to feel like episodic television
In the same "Good Morning America" interview, the host references the fact that "Avatar 3" is largely finished, and James Cameron has plans going up to "Avatar 5." Heck, Cameron's gone on the record saying he'd be down to go up to "Avatar 7" if there's demand for it. This is a franchise that could be every bit as sprawling as "Star Wars," and as long as the money keeps rolling in, it could go on for a long time.
With a threat as large and looming as the Resources Development Administration, more threats could easily impact Jake Sully, even if Quaritch eventually gets dispatched for good. In fact, Cameron already has a good idea of how his sequels will play out. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Cameron spoke about how he already has a good idea of how future "Avatar" installments will play out, and in the era of golden prestige television, it should make a lot of people happy.
Cameron stated, "The way I mapped this out is that it's one big continuous saga when you see it all, but each film has its own offramp and finale that rounds it all out. The best metaphor is really good episodic TV, where you understand the problems of the character. The specific proximal problem of this story has been resolved, but these characters are going to have the same problem next time I drop in on them because they're not going change that much, or they will change profoundly if something happens that's bad enough or enlightening enough." One thing's clear from all this: there's plenty more to see in Pandora.