The first official image from James Cameron’s Avatar: Fire and Ash is ready to bare its teeth. The pic arrives courtesy of Empire Magazine, who recently spoke with Avatar franchise star Zoe Saldaña about the third film in the series and the context of the new photo of a rageful Neytiri. In Avatar: The Way of Water, Neteyam, the firstborn son of Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña), meets a tragic end during the film’s finale, adding fuel to the fire that already burns between the Na’vi, the Metkayina clan, and the RDA. Today’s image reflects Neytiri’s grief and demand for blood as war rages, her bow knocked and ready to let loose.
Speaking with Empire, Saldaña explained the impact of losing Neteyam on Neytiri and how that event informs her part in Avatar: Fire and Ash.
“That pain is seamlessly followed up on,” she tells Empire in the outlet’s latest Path To Pandora exclusive, running up to Fire And Ash’s arrival. “And because it doesn’t really have anywhere to go, and doesn’t go away, rage can also come from it. [The Sullys] are going to be tested as a family. Not only would everything that’s happening compel her to question the bond she has with her husband,” Saldaña says, “but also her bond with herself, her people, her land, and the way the Na’vi are. She’s going to question everything.”
According to Saldaña, Neytiri will “meet her match” when confronting the leader of the Ash People clan, Varang, who Oona Chaplin plays.
James Cameron also had some flattering words about Saldaña and her career trajectory: “Zoe is incandescent in this film. With Emilia Pérez, she’s finally getting recognized as the top-tier actor we’ve always known she is. But in [Fire And Ash], that goes way beyond what you’ve seen before.”
Avatar: Fire and Ash wages war on the box office later this year on December 19, 2025. The threequel introduces the latest in VFX courtesy of James Cameron’s demand to push the art form’s boundaries with every chapter of the Avatar saga. Anticipation for the third movie will surely reach a fever pitch later this year. For now, we’ve got this excellent image to gander at.
