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The open-endedness of Avatar is both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, not having anything set and stone following the film’s conclusion left the universe wide open for exploring, which is what James Cameron seems to be most interested in doing with this series anyways. But, on the other hand, there was nothing about the conclusion to Avatar that left me feeling like I HAD to see a sequel. No big hook or engrossing cliffhanger. If there was never another Avatar movie again, I would not have shed a tear. And for what it’s worth, I felt like there never would be one after nearly ten years of waiting.
But, lo and behold, Avatar 2 (and 3 and 4 for that matter) has officially begun production, meaning there’s at least a 70% chance we will one day see the continued adventures of the Na’vi of Pandora. Of course the main question is whether or not we will actually care when it happens, which is a bit complicated.
On the one hand, the cultural cache of the Avatar franchise is pretty much nothing, and as I already mentioned, there was little about the first film’s characters or stories that exactly leave me itching for more. On the other hand…never underestimate James Cameron, folks.
So well the phrase “Jake Sully’s family” might cause me to ellicit quite the Liz Lemon eyeroll…who knows? Maybe they will prove to all be captivating, wonderful characters. I mean, how bad could they possibly be?
Eeek…oh boy. Yeah, that. As revealed by Entertainment Weekly, this is the new young cast who will be taking on the reigns (presumably) of this franchise. A few of them will apparently be playing the family of Jake Sully and Ne…umm, I want to say Netyrie? Netiri? Zoe Saldana from the first one.
It’s unclear who exactly will be playing the members of the Sully brood at this point though, as EW claims that the picture also includes young actors who will be playing members of the Metkayina tribe, led by Cliff Curtis. Or, more accurately, a Na’vi being played by Cliff Curtis. Cliff Curtis, the successful actor seen in films like Sunshine and The Fountain, is not playing himself leading a gang of blue cat creatures in Avatar 2.
Also pictured is the only kid playing a human in the cast, Javier “Spider” Socorro (COOL NAME BRO) who is a “human teenager born at the Hell’s Gate military complex, a crucial location in the first film.” So crucial, in fact, that I’m sure all of you remembered its name without me even having to type it! So deep and memorable is the lure of the Avatar world.
Spider is reportedly being played by Jack Champion, a.k.a. the kid with the blue shirt in the right corner of the image. You’ll also notice him as the only distinctly pale-skinned member of the cast because, let me remind you, the kid’s face will actually be seen in the movie. And no way could we let one of those minority kids do that, even with a name like Javier “Spider” Socorro.
Anyways…whatever, man. Avatar 2. It’s coming our way whether we like it or not, and it’s bringing on a lot of precocious kids with it. Let’s just hope they are more of the Stranger Things and It variety rather than the (*shudders*) Disney Channel Youtube-star types.
Also published on Medium.
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Matthew Legarreta is the Editor and Owner of Freshly Popped Culture. A big ol' ball of movie, TV, and video game loving flesh, Matthew has been writing about pop culture for nearly a decade. Matthew also loves writing about himself in the third person, because it makes him feel important (or something.)