James Cameron debuts 'Avatar: Fire and Ash' footage

Disney unveiled the first look at James Cameron’s upcoming film Avatar: Fire and Ash during CinemaCon on Thursday night. Introduced by Cameron through a video message, the three-minute footage highlighted the film’s deeper emotional tone and teased the epic scale of the trilogy’s next chapter.

Zoe Saldana, who plays Neytiri, introduced the clip and shared that the film expands the world of Pandora by introducing two new clans—the Wind Traders and the Ash People. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the footage opened with Neytiri saying, The strength of the ancestors is here, followed by a powerful battle scene where Jake urges her to let go of hatred. It ended with a haunting line: We cannot defeat this enemy that comes from the stars.

Cameron revealed that the film’s heroes will face both human invaders and a new Na’vi tribe, the Ash People. He confidently described the movie as really fucking cool, saying audiences will love it. The film is set to release on December 19.

The Avatar franchise continues to dominate box office history. The 2009 original earned $2.9 billion worldwide, while The Way of Water reached $2.3 billion. Cameron also confirmed Fire and Ash will run slightly longer than its predecessor and is part of a five-film saga ending in 2031.