Disney shook up its upcoming release calendar, which led to Avatar 3's theatrical release being pushed back by a whole year. This will affect the release of the following films in the franchise. Producer Jon Landau took the opportunity to share the first behind-the-scenes image from the Avatar 3 set to confirm the delay, and based on his words, fans should know that the wait will be worth it in the end.Avatar 3 is now the film that is on fans' and critics' radar, with the first two films in the franchise being extremely successful at the box office. However, Disney's reshuffle of the release calendar means Avatar 3 will be released on December 19, 2025, instead of the initially planned December 20, 2024. It was previously confirmed that audiences would get three more films following Avatar: The Way of Water, and based on the new calendar, Avatar 4 and Avatar 5 will now release on December 21, 2029, and December 19, 2031, respectively. Both films have been pushed back three years each, and fans will get the final chapter 22 years after the original 2009 blockbuster.On his official Twitter account, producer Landau shared an image of a screen on set that features a scene from Avatar 3. The image shows a young Na'vi, the people who inhabit Pandora, but it is unclear who the character is. Another Na'vi stands close by, wearing a type of suit that could potentially be armor. “Each Avatar film is an exciting but epic undertaking that takes time to bring to the quality level we as filmmakers strive for and audiences have come to expect. The team is hard at work and can’t wait to bring audiences back to Pandora in December 2025,” reads Landau's caption.
The Avatar 3 plot is still being kept under wraps. However, director James Cameron has previously revealed that the focus will shift away from the protagonist Jake Sully and his son, Lo'ak te Suli Tsyeyk'itan, who will be the upcoming film’s narrator. It has left fans wondering what the focus of the film, and its sequels, will be. However, it does hint towards the Na'vi characters, which fans have come to love, possibly facing other tribes on Pandora.
The Avatar franchise isn’t the only one delayed amid the Disney reshuffle. Several films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe have also been impacted, including Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars, with the latter being pushed back two years. Several projects in the MCU have also been impacted by the Writers Guild of America strike, including the much-awaited Spider-Man 4, with Tom Holland confirming that their meetings are currently on pause.
Avatar 3 is scheduled for a theatrical release on December 19, 2025.
Source: Jon Landau/Twitter