Thirteen years on from the first movie, James Cameron’s first Avatar sequel is now under two months away and it seems the filmmaker plans to make up for lost time by inviting fans to spend over three hours on Pandora with Avatar: The Way of Water.
According to various theater listings in the United States, the Avatar sequel clocks in at 190 minutes, making it 28 minutes longer than the theatrical cut of the 2009 original (and twelve minutes longer than the 178-minute Extended Cut released on home entertainment formats). It is however 4 minutes shorter than Cameron’s previous blockbuster epic Titanic.
Multiple trades have since reported that the film is yet to lock and its exact runtime remains undecided, although it will indeed exceed three hours.
Set more than a decade after the events of the first film, “Avatar: The Way of Water” begins to tell the story of the Sully family (Jake, Neytiri, and their kids), the trouble that follows them, the lengths they go to keep each other safe, the battles they fight to stay alive, and the tragedies they endure.
Avatar: The Way of Water is directed by James Cameron and sees Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Joel David Moore, CCH Pounder, Matt Gerald, Dileep Rao, Stephen Lang, Giovanni Ribisi, and Sigourney Weaver all reprising their roles from the 2009 blockbuster, while new additions to the cast include Kate Winslet, Oona Chaplin, Cliff Curtis, Britain Dalton, Filip Geljo, Jamie Flatters, Bailey Bass, Trinity Bliss, Jack Champion, Duane Evans Jr., Edie Falco, Brendan Cowell, Michelle Yeoh, Jemaine Clement, Keston John, and CJ Jones.
Avatar: The Way of Water is set for release on December 16th, 2022.