[James Cameron on 4K] ‘AVATAR’ and ‘AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER’ are destined to wow on home screens

James Cameron is equal parts a technician and an artist. Say what you will about him pivoting his career from one-off experiences to the world of Pandora (three more Avatars are on the way). Still, he cultivates thrilling films about the work process – people doing particular jobs in unique places. Whether underwater, on the water, in outer space, or on alien worlds, we get to know characters, their relationships, the roles they play, and the consequences of their actions.

With half of his filmography newly released on 4K Ultra HD and 4K UHD Digital, it’s the perfect time to peel back the layers across his work, soak in the awe and wonder of his visuals, and speculate what he may be saying while entertaining us.

For part three, here are the collector’s editions of 2009’s Avatar and 2022’s Avatar: The Way of Water.

(View Pt. 1 – The Abyss here and Pt. 2 – Titanic here.)

AVATAR (Collector’s Edition)

2009 | PG-13 | 162 min.

As monumental of a visual achievement as the original 2009 Avatar is, there’s no getting around how corny the dialogue is. For every breathtaking scene (characters soaring through the sky on mountain banshees, Pandora plantlife blooming, and alien creatures merely existing in their habitats), there are cringe-worthy lines that are not in short supply. Admittedly, dialogue is nothing Cameron should flex over. Neither is how much he recycles his own material.

Look across Cameron’s filmography; you’ll notice narrative, character, and visual beats that align. Whether it’s machinery, aircraft, or character arcs, common threads from Cameron’s movies can be plucked from Avatar. (The Way of Water has a ship sinking and a Newt-like character, for crying out loud.) But like throwing dice in a Yahtzee cup, Cameron can produce unique outcomes. For that, you cannot wholly wag a finger at Cameron. As mentioned in these 4K dives, no one can shape an action vehicle like Cameron. They’re thrilling works, and Avatar is no different, especially on the home screen in UHD.

Just as the central character, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), takes in the beauty of the otherworldly planet of Pandora, where mountains float in the sky and plants glow like a Nicolas Winding Refn film, the viewer is along for the ride. It’s a classic fish-out-of-water tale that sees Jake, a paraplegic Marine, stepping into an alien avatar to learn from Pandora’s first people, the Na’vi. It’s like Dances with Wolves or FernGully, where a character with a particular point of view goes through beautiful change. Cameron is very much about protecting our world and its resources, and it’s inspiring to see him work these more significant messages into his films without feeling overly preachy. You feel the Na’vi’s connection to the land, and when the military steps in with their empathyless agendas, you share their emotions.

Avatar is not just a visual display. It contains heart, humor, and all the aspects needed to make it a well-rounded story. Sure, the script could have been punched up with something more poetic and less obvious. Still, it’s not a bad egg.

Grade: B+

(Bonus content listed at the bottom.)

AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER (Collector’s Edition)

2022 | PG-13 | 192 min.

After many false promises, an Avatar sequel finally arrived nearly 15 years later, and it was worth the wait. The Way of Water improves upon its processor in many ways. The characters are more fun to hang around, the environments harness more awe, and the sense of epic is unmatched. And the script contains fewer eye rolls, which is a massive bonus. (Thank you, Mr. Cameron, for allowing other filmmakers to bring their own screenplay paint.)

The Way of Water may be the most beautiful film in 4K. It pops with well-rendered images and vibrant colors. The whale-like creatures, the Tulkun, are so majestic to watch. The water rolls off them like you’re witnessing Cameron film a National Geographic documentary on an alien planet. It evokes all the senses.

While this sequel admittedly just reboots its original storyline with a group of kids instead of one man, its pieces serve a greater purpose. We see these kids adapt to a new environment. They must retreat from the forest to learn the ways of a neighboring clan (the Metkayina) that lives at sea. Again, Cameron allows viewers to become invested in their daily lives — how they hunt, provide, and respect ocean life. It’s a far more exciting culture than the Na’vi. (I guess we’ll see if the next Avatars take to other elements like a fire/lava or ice/snow clan. That may be a little too cheap. I’m down for more adventures at sea because Cameron feels home. And I’m digging the Star Wars-like dynamics, with the baddie having a Vader-Luke type of thing going on here.)

There’s a reason why these Avatar movies are the top blockbusters at the box office. They’re genuinely astounding works of art. While they don’t come without their shortcomings, they’re forgivable and always scrub away any stupidity with a nice image or moving character moment. (Zoe Saldana’s acting in this one deserved some Oscar love, and the family’s interactions with one another are heartwarming.) Like most of Cameron’s work, it will have legs that’ll walk on.

Note: Detailed bonus content is at the bottom of this article, but it should be mentioned just how much is available to overwhelm you. There’s enough to choke on. I don’t imagine casual viewers will watch hour-long dailies/raw footage without the finishing touches. However, the edited documentaries and making-of featurettes are highly fascinating. It’s something that fuels the imagination, as Cameron and Co. detail every stage of the process, from pre-production to Disney World adventure parks.

Also, bookmark the family-friendly version of the original Avatar for your younglings and a special extended cut for cinephiles craving more. The family-friendly version mostly removes the language and dials back the sex scene. However, you may have to skip through some moaning for preteens. So, it’s a more comfortable watch but not entirely family-friendly. The extended version operates similarly to The Abyss’s extended cut. It’s not a total departure, just more padding. The theatrical version gets the job done, but if you’re curious, the extended cut is not a waste.

Grade: A

Avatar Special Features and Technical Specs:

• NEW – THREE VERSIONS OF THE FILM: THEATRICAL, SPECIAL EDITION, AND COLLECTOR’S EXTENDED CUT
• NEW Behind-The-Scenes Presentation Hosted by Jon Landau – Join Jon Landau as he unlocks the cinematic secrets behind the making of Avatar.
• NEW Colonel Miles Quaritch RDA Promos – Get an inside look into the RDA with these in-universe promos hosted by Colonel Miles Quaritch.
• NEW Still Gallery – Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldaña Special Shoot

• English Family Audio Track Theatrical and Special Edition Release – 5.1 Dolby Digital
• Direct Access to New/Additional Scenes – Special Edition
  • Herd – As they fly over Pandora in Trudy’s gunship, Jake, Grace and Norm get a closer look at some of Pandora’s creatures
  • The Schoolhouse – Entering an abandoned schoolhouse in the jungle with Grace and Norm to retrieve supplies, Jake makes a grim discovery.
  • Purple Moss – Jake follows Neytiri after his rescue, and delights in the bioluminescent moss that glows beneath his feet with every step.
  • I Don’t Even Know Your Name – Newly tasked with teaching Jake the Na’vi ways, Neytiri brings him to dinner with the entire clan.
  • What Does Hold Them Up? – The Avatar team lands at their new base camp in the Hallelujah Mountains, and Jake and Norm marvel at the floating mountains.
  • Extended Montage – Jake learns the ways of the Pandoran forest under Neytiri’s tutelage, and the gulf between his two worlds grows ever wider.
  • Neytiri’s Flyby – As Tsu’tey, Jake and two other young hunters travel across suspended vines to dizzying heights, Neytiri sails past on her banshee.
  • Sturmbeest Hunt – Omaticayan hunters on direhorses attack a massive herd of sturmbeests, while Jake takes aim from atop his banshee.
  • Extended Love Scene – Jake and Neytiri confess their feelings for one another and bond together for life under the Tree of Voices in this extended scene.
  • Drums of War – The morning after the military’s attack on the Tree of Voices, Parker and Quaritch get some bad news from the reconnaissance team.
  • Tsu’tey’s Fall – In the RDA assault, Tsu’tey fights fiercely after boarding the Valkyrie shuttle. But the soldiers counter with a hail of bullets.
  • Strumbeest Attack – Sturmbeests charge to the rescue when Neytiri is cornered by RDA soldiers in AMP suits.
  • Extended Thanator Fight – Neytiri and her fearsome thanator battle Colonel Quaritch in his AMP suit in this extended sequence.
  • The Last Shadow – When Neytiri and Jake find Tsu’tey mortally wounded, he passes leadership of the Omaticaya to Jake, with one last request of him.
• Direct Access to New/Additional Scenes – Collector’s Extended Cut
  • Earth – Jake navigates a bleak, dystopian Earth before tragic news offers an escape.
  • Herd – As they fly over Pandora in Trudy’s gunship, Jake, Grace and Norm get a closer look at some of Pandora’s creatures
  • The Schoolhouse – Entering an abandoned schoolhouse in the jungle with Grace and Norm to retrieve supplies, Jake makes a grim discovery.
  • Purple Moss – Jake follows Neytiri after his rescue, and delights in the bioluminescent moss that glows beneath his feet with every step.
  • I Don’t Even Know Your Name – Newly tasked with teaching Jake the Na’vi ways, Neytiri brings him to dinner with the entire clan.
  • Sylwanin – Norm spars with Jake, who proceeds to one-up him. But Jake’s mention of Neytiri dredges up painful memories for Grace.
  • What Does Hold Them Up? – The Avatar team lands at their new base camp in the Hallelujah Mountains, and Jake and Norm marvel at the floating mountains.
  • Alternate Montage with Grace’s Story – As Jake learns the Na’vi ways, the gulf between his two worlds grows wider, and Grace shares the tragic tale of Neytiri’s sister.
  • Neytiri’s Flyby – As Tsu’tey, Jake and two other young hunters travel across suspended vines to dizzying heights, Neytiri sails past on her banshee.
  • Sturmbeest Hunt – Omaticayan hunters on direhorses attack a massive herd of sturmbeests, while Jake takes aim from atop his banshee.
  • Extended Love Scene – Jake and Neytiri confess their feelings for one another and bond together for life under the Tree of Voices in this extended scene.
  • Drums of War – The morning after the military’s attack on the Tree of Voices, Parker and Quaritch get some bad news from the reconnaissance team.
  • They Bulldozed a Sacred Site – Grace and Jake suspect that the RDA forces are plotting to provoke a Na’vi attack, as Trudy brings alarming news.
  • Tsu’tey’s Fall – In the RDA assault, Tsu’tey fights fiercely after boarding the Valkyrie shuttle. But the soldiers counter with a hail of bullets.
  • Strumbeest Attack – Sturmbeests charge to the rescue when Neytiri is cornered by RDA soldiers in AMP suits.
  • Extended Thanator Fight – Neytiri and her fearsome thanator battle Colonel Quaritch in his AMP suit in this extended sequence.
  • The Last Shadow – When Neytiri and Jake find Tsu’tey mortally wounded, he passes leadership of the Omaticaya to Jake, with one last request of him.
• Memories from Avatar – Producer Jon Landau leads a spirited conversation with cast members, Sam Worthington, Zoë Saldana, Sigourney Weaver and Stephen Lang, recalling warm memories from production and reflecting on the extraordinary success of Avatar.
• Avatar: A Look Back – In this retrospective, cast and filmmakers reflect on their extraordinary journey making Avatar, the groundbreaking technologies they used to create an unparalleled cinematic experience, and the profound effect the film had on audiences worldwide.
• Capturing Avatar – Journey with James Cameron and crew in this feature-length documentary, as they embark on a film the likes of which the world had never seen.
  • Part One – After years of testing, research and design, James Cameron’s tackled Avatar, “the most complex film” in his storied career.
  • Part Two – Actors and technology are pushed to the limit as James Cameron pushes the boundaries of a groundbreaking, new filmmaking paradigm.
  • Part Three – James Cameron used ground-breaking technology to merge the virtual and live-action elements of his film.
  • Part Four – The edit room became ground zero as music, sound and visual effects were finalized in order to make the film’s release date.
• Featurettes – Take a closer look at the creation of Pandora and the making of Avatar with featurettes on key aspects of production design, performance capture, and the post-production process.
  • Sculpting Avatar – Explore how clay maquettes were sculpted to help bring Avatar’s characters and creatures to life.
  • Creating the Banshee – Discover all that went into designing the Banshees, high-flying predators of the Pandoran sky.
  • Creating the Thanator – James Cameron and team reveal how the most terrifying beast in the Pandoran rain forest was brought to the screen.
  • The AMP Suit – Explore the design of the AMP (Amplified Mobility Platform) and discover why it was the perfect weapon for Colonel Quaritch.
  • Flying Vehicles – Explore the design of the RDA’s gunships and how they helped ground the story in a realistic world audiences could connect to.
  • Na’vi Costumes – Discover the costumes of Avatar and why it was essential to create real-world costumes for characters that were seen only in a virtual world.
  • Speaking Na’vi – Delve into the complex Na’vi language created for Avatar, and the challenging task for the cast who had to speak it.
  • Pandora Flora – Explore the science behind the Pandoran rainforest, including the exotic plants and bioluminescence.
  • Stunts – James Cameron and Avatar’s stunt coordinators discuss how they learned to move like a Na’vi, ride a Leonopteryx, and more.
  • Performance Capture – Discover how the actors’ actions, emotions and spirit were captured in performance and transferred to a virtual character.
  • Virtual Camera – Discover the virtual camera system that allowed James Cameron to apply camera angles, lighting and movement to his scenes long after the performance capture phase was completed.
  • The 3D Fusion Camera – Explore the newly designed 3D Fusion camera system which enabled the filmmakers to create an immersive stereographic experience.
  • The Simul-Cam – See how the newly created Simul-Cam seamlessly integrated the virtual world with the live action camera, allowing Jake’s Avatar to appear in a scene with real-world actors.
  • Editing Avatar – James Cameron and the film’s editors reveal the unique challenges they faced editing Avatar, and the benefits of “learning as you go”.
  • Scoring Avatar – Composer James Horner and James Cameron discuss how Avatar’s score was grounded in the familiar while evoking a breathtaking new world.
  • Sound Design – Explore the sounds of Pandora, including the Banshee, Direhorse and Thanator, as well as the near-future engineering sounds of the Dragon, Scorpion and more.
  • The Haka: The Spirit of New Zealand – On the final day of production, the New Zealand stuntmen honored James Cameron with a traditional Haka dance.
• Production Materials
  • The 2006 Art Reel – Explore a video montage of striking artwork that inspired the movie’s look and feel, accompanied by temp dialogue and score.
  • Brother Termite Test – Watch footage created by James Cameron’s production company for a science-fiction movie that was ultimately never produced.
  • The ILM Prototype with Motion Capture Reference – View a VFX test of the scene in which Jake and Neytiri meet, with performance capture reference.
  • The ILM Prototype without Motion Capture Reference – View a VFX test of the scene in which Jake and Neytiri meet, without performance capture reference.
  • Screen Test – Sam Worthington (Raw Footage) – This raw screen-test footage shows Sam Worthington nailing the part of Jake Sully in Avatar.
  • Screen Test – Zoe Saldaña (Raw Footage) – Zoe Saldaña tackles three scenes: Neytiri meeting Jake, their first visit to the Tree of Voices, and her learning of his deceit.
  • Zoe’s Life Cast (Raw Footage) – Zoe Saldaña undergoes the all-encompassing process of creating the life cast that will transform her into Neytiri.
  • James Cameron Speech: Beginning of Live Action Filming (Raw Footage) – Director James Cameron inspires and gives thanks to the crew on the first day of live-action filming in New Zealand.
  • ILM VFX Progression – Break down the layers of effects in a series of shots that showcase Avatar’s battles, vehicles and explosions.
  • Framestore VFX Progression – This reel opens a window into the art of worldbuilding through visual effects, highlighting Jake’s arrival on Pandora and more.
  • [HY·DRAU”LX] VFX Progression – Examine the layers of effects in shots such as the interior of Trudy’s gunner, the shuttle bringing Jake to Pandora, and more.
  • Hybride VFX Progression – Experience how the layering of effects in various shots from Avatar helps bring these scenes to life on screen.
  • Prime Focus VFX Progression – See the effects layered into the base’s control room where Jake tells the Colonel and Selfridge about Hometree, and more.
  • Look Effects, Inc. VFX Progression – Unpeel the effects in various shots from the base and mountain camps.
  • Crew Film: The Volume – Avatar cast and crew members appear in a spoof about a mo- cap actor.
• A Message from Pandora – See how James Cameron’s lifelong quest to protect the environment led him to fight for the Amazon and its indigenous peoples
• Deleted Scenes – Check out scenes that didn’t make the final cut.
  • User’s Guide for Viewing Avatar Scenes with Unfinished Shots – A tutorial on the different types of unfinished shots seen throughout the deleted material.
  • Stingbat Attack
  • Pandora Rules
  • Jake Meets Norm (First Cut)
  • Jake Sees Decanted Avatars
  • Norm Is a Living God
  • Breakfast with the Scientists
  • You’re in My World Now
  • Grandma’s Teylu
  • Pied Piper
  • Going to the Mountains
  • Interspecies Booty Call
  • Norm’s Attitude Improves
  • Learning Montage Section Early Cut
  • We’re Buying Time
  • Hunt Festival
  • Driving Range
  • The Dreamhunt
  • The Challenge
  • The Drums of War (Full Version)
  • Escape
  • The Eye of Eywa
  • You’re a Long Way from Earth
  • Battle Camp
  • Kick Some Blue Ass
  • Wainfleet Kills Norm
  • Neytiri Kills Wainfleet (Alt Wainfleet Death)
  • The Avatars Attack
  • New Life
• Scene Deconstruction – View these scenes in various production stages: final with picture-in- picture reference, template and performance capture.
  • Welcome to Your New Body
  • First Run
  • First Sortie
  • Night on Pandora
  • Shahaylu
  • Seyzey
  • You’re Mine
  • First Flight
  • Toruk Macto
  • You Are Omaticaya Now
  • I Am One of You
  • I Trusted You
  • The Aftermath
  • I See You
  • Fly with Me
  • You Chose Me for Something
  • Eywa Has Heard You
• Archives: Script, Artwork, Marketing
  • Theatrical Trailer
  • Teaser Trailer
  • Avatar: The Original Scriptment
  • Avatar: Screenplay Written by James Cameron
  • The Art of Avatar
    • The World of Pandora
    • The Creatures
    • Pandora Flora
    • Pandora Bioluminescence
    • The Na’vi
    • The Avatars
    • Maquettes
    • Na’vi Weapons
    • Na’vi Props
    • RDA Designs
    • Flying Vehicles
    • AMP Suit
    • Human Weapons
    • Land Vehicles
  • Avatar: The Songs
  • Pandorapedia
• Still Galleries
• Pandora – The World of Avatar – Go behind the scenes with James Cameron and Disney’s Imagineers to discover what it took to bring the breathtaking world of Avatar to Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
• Raw Footage Production Elements
  • Screen Test – Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldaña/Raw Footage – In their dual test, the chemistry between Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldaña lights up the screen.
  • Screen Test – Stephen Lang/Raw Footage – Stephen Lang fully inhabits the role of Colonel Miles Quaritch in this series of scenes.
  • Screen Test – Giovanni Ribisi/Raw Footage – Watch Parker Selfridge, Administrator of the RDA, come to life in Giovanni Ribisi’s performance.
  • Screen Test – Joel David Moore/Raw Footage – Joel David Moore pivots from one scene to another, fully invested in the character of Norm Spellman.
  • Screen Test – CCH Pounder/Raw Footage – CCH Pounder controls the room with her regal, imposing presence as Mo’at.
  • Screen Test – Laz Alonso/Raw Footage – As the fierce warrior Tsu’tey, Laz Alonso commands attention in this riveting performance.
  • Speaking Na’vi (Rehearsal/Raw Footage) – The Avatar actors make the Na’vi language their own in a series of clips that shows them learning how to speak it
  • Wētā Workshop: Walk & Talk Presentation/Raw Footage – Go behind the scenes on a guided tour with Richard Taylor, who breaks down the workings of a series of props.
  • Crew Short: The Night Before Avatar – In this animated short, producer Jon Landau has an unexpected adventure in the lead-up to Avatar’s opening.
• Pandora Discovered – Sigourney Weaver narrates this first look at the world of Pandora.

Avatar: The Way of Water Special Features and Technical Specs:

• • NEW Behind-the-Scenes Presentation Hosted by Jon Landau – Join Jon Landau as he takes you behind the scenes of the making of Avatar: The Way of Water and discover the groundbreaking techniques used to bring audiences back to Pandora.
  • NEW Memories from Avatar: The Way of Water – Producer Jon Landau joins Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver and Stephen Lang in a conversation about their experiences and insights coming back to Pandora 13 years later in Avatar: The Way of Water.
  • NEW Production Design Panel Hosted by Jon Landau – Uncover the inspiration behind the new designs of Avatar: The Way of Water with the award-winning Production Design team in this conversation hosted by Jon Landau.
  • NEW Deleted/Extended Scenes – Check out these scenes that didn’t make the final cut.
    • User’s Guide for Viewing Avatar: The Way of Water Deleted Scenes and Extended Cuts with Unfinished Shots
    • Date Night (Extended Cut)
    • Crashed Samson Tiltrotor (Extended Cut)
    • Goodbye Mo’at
    • Neytiri Rides an Ilu
    • Spider Mocks the Recoms
    • Neytiri Spearfishes
    • Learning Montage
    • Ardmore and Quaritch Discuss Jake (Extended Cut)
    • Ta’unui Village (Extended Cut)
    • The Tulkun Hunt (Extended Cut)
    • Scoresby and Garvin Rescued
    • Parents from Hell and Standoff (Extended Cut)
  • NEW Scene Deconstruction – View these scenes in various production stages: final with picture-in-picture reference, template and performance capture.
    • Quaritch Wakes Up in His New Body
    • The Return to High Camp
    • High Camp Biolab
    • Quaritch and Ardmore Discuss Their Mission
    • Jake and Neytiri Argue
    • First Swim
    • Lo’ak Meets Payakan
    • Jake and Kiri Dock Talk
    • Death Rock
    • Spider Finds Quaritch Underwater and Saves Him
    • Spider Drags Quaritch to Land but Leaves Him
  • NEW Production Materials
    • “One Meal a Day” – James Cameron discusses the on-set initiative to eat one vegan meal a day.
    • Editing – Learn, step by step, how the editing team transformed reference camera footage into the compelling narrative of Avatar: The Way of Water.
    • 3D Technology – Learn how the production team pushed 3D technology to new depths in this behind-the-scenes featurette.
    • Virtual Camera – Join Richard Baneham, Oscar®-winning visual effects supervisor, and the visual effects team as they discuss the virtual camera’s role in the production process.
    • Bringing the RDA to Life – Join James Cameron, Jon Landau, David Vickery and the ILM team for a look at the visual effects created for the opening sequences of the film.
    • Tank Timelapse – Watch the building of the underwater performance capture tank in this timelapse video.
    • Wētā Reel – VFX breakdown of shots by Wētā Effects.
    • ILM Reel – VFX breakdown of shots by ILM.
    • CJ Jones Sign Language Guide – Learn the basics of the Metkayina sign language from creator CJ Jones.
    • JackCam – Join Jack Champion (“Spider”) as he interviews cast and crew on the set of Avatar: The Way of Water.
    • Shaman Blessing – A Brazilian shaman blesses the production of Avatar: The Way of Water.
    • Cliff Curtis Blessings – Actor Cliff Curtis gives Maori blessings for the cast and crew of Avatar: The Way of Water.
  • NEW Beyond the Big Screen
    • Pandora: The World of Avatar – Discover the story behind the artistry and imagination of Pandora – the World of Avatar at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
    • Crew Movie – Avatar: The Way of the Jimverse – Join producer Jon Landau on an animated adventure across the Jimverse to restore order and save the world of Pandora.
    • James Cameron and Jon Landau Hand and Footprint Ceremony – See James Cameron and Jon Landau honored with a hand and footprint ceremony in front of the world-famous Chinese Theater in Hollywood, CA.
    • “Scene at the Academy” – Check out this Academy featurette for Avatar: The Way of Water, diving into a key moment from the film.
  • NEW Archives: Script, Artwork, Marketing
    • Monday Night Football TV Spot – Watch the TV spot broadcast exclusively during ESPN’s Monday Night Football.
  • NEW Archives: Script, Artwork, Marketing – Dive into the Avatar Archives with these exclusive behind-the- scenes production assets.

• Inside Pandora’s Box – A series of featurettes on the challenges facing cast and crew as filmmakers devise new technologies to push the limits of cinema.
  • Building the World of Pandora – James Cameron and a team of talented artists combine years of research with their design skills to build the world of Pandora with new characters, creatures, indigenous clans, underwater environments and the take-no-prisoners hard-tech world of the RDA.
  • Capturing Pandora – James Cameron’s approach to performance capture has the cast performing in a volume rigged with infrared cameras to capture their movement, and head rig cameras to capture emotion on their faces with only the boundaries of imagination to limit them.
  • The Undersea World of Pandora – Co-production designer Dylan Cole and his team conceive of the marine creatures required for Avatar: The Way of Water while James Cameron and his stunt team devise extraordinary means to bring those creatures to life in a performance capture tank.
  • The Challenges of Pandora’s Waters – James Cameron tackles the “non-trivial challenge” of performance capture above and below the water’s surface, utilizing a wave machine and current generator to reproduce ocean conditions, and underwater vehicles to replicate creature movement.
  • Pandora’s Returning Characters – James Cameron reunites with his returning cast – Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver and Stephen Lang. Together they discuss the amazing evolution of their characters in Avatar: The Way of Water.
  • Pandora’s Next Generation – Meet the talented young newcomers who have been cast as the next generation of Na’vi and follow them through the adventure of making Avatar: The Way of Water.
  • Spider’s Web – James Cameron introduced the human character of Spider into the fabric of Pandora – thus creating a host of technological challenges on set…and an incredible journey for the young actor, Jack Champion.
  • Becoming Na’vi – The Avatar cast is immersed in the culture of the indigenous Na’vi, living off the land in the Hawaiian rainforest and training in a multitude of disciplines in preparation for their roles.
  • The Reef People of Pandora – In true James Cameron-style, the Metkayina reef clan has been developed with great attention to detail, bearing unique evolutionary traits and a culture – with new dwellings, new clothes and different way of life – all a result of living off the ocean.
  • Bringing Pandora to Life – Once James Cameron completes his virtual production process, every sequence is turned over to Wētā FX to bring Pandora to life – with unprecedented advancements in facial performance, environments and making CG water look real.
  • The RDA Returns to Pandora – Co-production designer Ben Procter and his team present an armada of new vehicles and human technologies that the RDA brings to Pandora – in concept design and with practical builds.
  • The New Characters of Pandora – Meet the important new characters of the Avatar saga played by Kate Winslet, Cliff Curtis, Edie Falco, Brendan Cowell and Jemaine Clement.
  • The Sounds of Pandora – Hear how James Cameron worked with composer Simon Franglen to create the distinctive music of The Way of Water while building on James Horner’s brilliant score for Avatar, and learn how Chris Boyes created the immersive sounds of Pandora.
  • New Zealand – Pandora’s Home – The production of the Avatar sequels is so thoroughly ensconced in New Zealand that James Cameron considers The Way of Water a “New Zealand film.” Hear reflections from the cast and crew, including the remarkable New Zealand crew, on making the film.
• More from Pandora’s Box – Additional featurettes that highlight special teams within the production
  • Casting – Discover the screen tests that won the talented young cast their roles in Avatar: The Way of Water.
  • Stunts – The Avatar stunt team isn’t just creating breathtaking action, they’re driving the story. From racing underwater on ilus, flying the skies on ikrans, to maneuvering RDA speed boats, the stunt team leaves you breathless and wanting more.
  • The Lab – Explore the Lightstorm Lab, the backbone of virtual production for the Avatar films. Comprised of specialized teams, the Lab builds & supports every aspect of the production – environments, motion edit, Kabuki, sequence, post-viz and software development.
  • The Troupe – Avatar’s Troupe is the Swiss Army Knife of acting, while playing dozens of roles on set, in the performance capture volume and on live-action sets, they bring life to Na’vi clans and RDA Recoms. They also play Na’vi-scale puppets on the live-action sets.
• Marketing Materials & Music Video – Marketing materials used to build audience awareness of the film
  • Nothing Is Lost (You Give Me Strength) Music Video – Multi Grammy-winning, music superstar, The Weeknd, performs his emotionally packed end title song in the official music video for the smash hit “Nothing Is Lost (You Give Me Strength).”
  • Theatrical Trailers 1 & 2 – Avatar: The Way of Water used two theatrical trailers to engage the audience. The first was a teaser trailer released 7 months before the film. The second was a standard trailer that premiered 5 weeks before the film’s release.