Deadline brings word from producer Jon Landau at CineEurope in Barcelona that the four upcoming Avatar sequels start date is now officially set for September 25, 2017! Pre-production on the four films has been underway in New Zealand since April.
“At the heart of any movie are the characters,” Landau said of the stories, which will all take place exclusively on the planet Pandora. “One of the strengths of great scripts are always the universal and relatable themes… There’s no more relatable theme than family. At the center of each of our four movies will be the Sully family. Each sequel will play as a stand-alone movie. Each movie’s story will come to its own conclusion… However, when looked at as a whole, the journey across all four movies will create an even larger connected epic saga for audiences around the world.”
Returning cast members include Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Joel David Moore, Stephen Lang and Sigourney Weaver. Cliff Curtis and Oona Chaplin are also joining the sequels. The Avatar sequels will be produced by James Cameron and Jon Landau through their Lightstorm Entertainment. The James Cameron-directed sequels are written by Cameron along with Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver, Josh Friedman, and Shane Salerno.
20th Century Fox and Lightstorm Entertainment recently announced new release dates for all four of the films via the official Avatar Facebook page, saying, “Great to be working with the best team in the business! Avatar takes flight as we begin concurrent production on four sequels. The journey continues December 18, 2020, December 17, 2021, December 20, 2024 and December 19, 2025!”
Released in 2009, the first Avatar film remains the highest-grossing film worldwide with over $2.7 billion in box office gross. It was dethroned by Star Wars: The Force Awakens as the highest at the domestic box office, pushing past Avatar‘s $760 million with a total of $936 million.
