Great news for Avatar fans! James Cameron has officially revealed that Avatar: Fire and Ash, set for release on December 19, 2025, will have a longer runtime than its predecessor, Avatar: The Way of Water (2022).
While the first Avatar (2009) ran for 145 minutes and The Way of Water stretched to 187 minutes, Cameron isn’t concerned about length. He explained in Empire‘s Path to Pandora report that Fire and Ash wasn’t initially planned but became necessary due to an overload of ideas in The Way of Water.
“The film was moving like a bullet train, and we weren’t drilling down enough on character. So I said, ‘Guys, we’ve got to split it,’” Cameron shared.
The screenplay for Fire and Ash comes from a team of seasoned writers, including Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, Josh Friedman, and Shane Salerno, who are also working on Avatar 4 and Avatar 5. With its expanded scope, Fire and Ash promises to be the most immersive installment yet.