Disney’s $1.5B Space Opera Sets Exciting New Release At The Perfect Time

Ryan Northrup is a Senior Staff Writer on ScreenRant’s Movie & TV News team, where he has authored nearly 5,000 articles, including features and reviews. A graduate of McMaster University, Ryan began his career in public relations before attending Vancouver Film School. There, he built lasting industry connections and optioned a feature film screenplay.

Avatar: Fire and Ash is returning with a new release.

Directed by James Cameron, the latest Avatar film hit theaters last December, continuing the story of the Sully family after the events of Avatar: The Way of Water (2022). Fire and Ash introduces the fiery Mangkwan Clan as the RDA continues ravaging Pandora, and the sequel paves the way for a planned fourth and fifth installment.

Before any further sequels, though, Avatar: Fire and Ash is making a comeback later this year with a Collector’s Edition on both 4K UHD and digital. Set to release on December 8, which is in line with when Avatar films typically hit theaters, the new edition features over nine hours of bonus features, including over six hours that have never been seen before. The physical media release comes with all new packaging, which is showcased below:

Credit: MovieStillsDB

Credit: MovieStillsDB

Credit: MovieStillsDB

Credit: MovieStillsDB

On top of 12 deleted and extended scenes, the Collector’s Edition includes bonus features that dive into how the Avatar films are made, as well as side-by-side comparisons of the film’s stars doing performance capture and their finished scenes in the movie. The bonus features also include a tribute to late producer Jon Landau, RDA training videos, performance capture demos, and deconstructions of key scenes. The list of scene deconstructions is included below:

Starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Stephen Lang, Sigourney Weaver, Britain Dalton, Jack Champion, Oona Chaplin, and Kate Winslet, among others, Avatar: Fire and Ash was a hit in theaters but failed to reach the heights of either of its predecessors at the box office. After The Way of Water grossed $2.334 billion worldwide, Fire and Ash grossed $1.485 billion. The first Avatar (2009) remains the top performer at $2.923 billion.

As seen in the chart above, Fire and Ash reviews also didn’t quite match up to previous Avatar films. Though generally well received, the third installment was criticized for feeling too familiar to The Way of Water, even if it does feature stunning visuals, strong action, and some powerful emotional moments.

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Though still scheduled to hit theaters on December 21, Avatar 4 remains something of a question mark after Fire and Ash. Cameron himself has affirmed his desire to conclude the franchise, but has said changes have to occur before the films can move forward.

Speaking with Empire Film Podcast in May, the director noted the movies’ high production costs and said he needs to figure out how to “do them in half the time for two-thirds of the cost.” According to Cameron, solving that problem would take about a year.

A more concrete update on the future of the Avatar franchise, then, may not arrive until next spring, but finishing out the Sully family saga evidently remains a goal for the Terminator filmmaker. As the wait continues for more of the Disney sci-fi franchise, the upcoming Collector’s Edition for Avatar: Fire and Ash certainly looks like the perfect way to return to Pandora.

Avatar: Fire and Ash