Published Jun 21, 2026, 11:58 AM EDT
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 4 is really going to shake up the franchise, according to Sam Worthington.
Following the release of the third film last December, there has been some uncertainty regarding whether the planned fourth and fifth films in James Cameron's hit sci-fi franchise will happen, and when they might release if they do. The Avatar: Fire and Ash ending keeps the door open to continue the story of Worthington's Jake Sully, with the RDA threat still looming over the moon of Pandora.
Now, speaking with CBS Mornings, Worthington shares a new Avatar 4 tidbit, revealing that he's read the scripts for the remaining two films and that the fourth is his favorite of the franchise. According to Worthington, the next movie is going to introduce some elements that mark a major shift for the world of the films. Check out his full comment below:
“I’ve read them. I’m really lucky. I’ve read four and five, and four is my favourite, so hopefully we get to keep journeying. It completely changes the whole dynamic and the whole world.”
It's not clear what exactly Worthington is referring to that will so monumentally change the franchise, but some story information about films four and five has previously been revealed. Notably, Avatar 4's story is going to pick up soon after the events of Fire and Ash but then feature a time jump of roughly eight years after the first act.
This time jump will mean that the Sully children, including Lo'ak (Britain Dalton), Kiri (Sigourney Weaver), and Tuk (Trinity Jo-Li Bliss), could be far more grown up, potentially taking more of a central role in the storytelling. The third film had already made Lo'ak the narrator after Jake narrated the prior two, and Kiri is set to narrate the next one.
This time jump could also, however, allow for some major technological advancements within the world of the film. One of the biggest revelations of Fire and Ash, in addition to Kiri's connection to Eywa growing, was Spider (Jack Champion) developing the ability to breathe Pandora's air, which is toxic to humans.
As established in the third installment, this makes Spider extremely valuable to the RDA. If humans develop the ability to breathe on Pandora, that marks a significant threat to the Na'vi, potentially turning the tide in the ongoing war. An eight-year time jump could give humanity the time to reverse-engineer Spider's new ability, marking a monumental franchise shift in the balance of power.
Whether Avatar 4 happens, though, remains something of an open question, as evidenced by Worthington's own framing. Though the fourth film received some promising updates from producers earlier this year, Fire and Ash reviews and box office performance were softer than the prior films, leading Cameron to clarify that he needs to find a way to make the next installments at lower budget levels.
Avatar 4 is still scheduled to release on December 19, 2029, but this date seems unlikely to stick. If and when the film does eventually arrive, audiences are clearly in for some exciting surprises.
Release Date December 19, 2029
Producers Jon Landau
English (US) ·