Avatar 4 Needs To Start A New Era For James Cameron's Sci-Fi Franchise

1 hour ago 11

Published Jun 14, 2026, 9:00 AM EDT

Nick Bythrow is a Lead Writer for ScreenRant. He has been writing for the site since September 2022. He graduated from Hampshire College in 2022, where he triple majored in Journalism, Communications, and Media Studies. When he's not writing about TV and movies for ScreenRant and his blog, Frayed Branches, Nick is penning speculative fiction and poetry on Amazon. He lives outside Boston, Massachusetts.

Avatar 4 marks a major milestone for James Cameron's sci-fi franchise, making it the perfect opportunity for the movies to begin a new era. Avatar: Fire and Ash's story marked a new chapter for the Sully family, as Jake, Neytiri, and their surviving children are forced to grapple with the RDA's new alliance with the fire-based Mangkwan clan. This leads to new conflicts as the Na'vi continue fighting for Pandora's future.

However, the third installment also included a curious difference. Unlike the previous two movies, which featured Jake as the main narrator, Fire and Ash changed it so that their son, Lo'ak, is the core narrator. While the focus is still mostly on Jake and Neytiri, alongside the rest of the family, like Kiri and Tuk, Lo'ak gets a deeper focus following the end of The Way of Water.

Avatar: Fire and Ash ends with the Sully family returning to a peaceful way of life, despite the looming threat of Quaritch and Varang still being out there somewhere. Lo'ak's narration is potent here, as is Spider's introduction to the deceased Na'vi and Kiri coming face-to-face with Grace, revealed to be her true mother.

But this also lays the groundwork for how Avatar 4 should differentiate itself from the previous installments of the franchise. While Lo'ak's narration was a good way to differentiate the sequel, it still had Jake front-and-center for most of the story. With the next installment, though, it would make much more sense for another Sully family member to take the spotlight.

It's Time To Replace Jake Sully As The Main Character In Avatar 4

Although not much has been revealed about Avatar 4's story, the planned sequel has ample opportunity to switch things up by giving a different Sully the spotlight. Lo'ak's narration feels like a good start, especially since it allowed the film to explore his character more deeply. But it didn't shift the primary perspective from Jake, something the next sequel could do.

Avatar: Fire and Ash proved Lo'ak is a good candidate for this different focus. As Jake's eldest son, his character growth and the changes he's gone through have been important facets to the second and third films. Future Avatar movies can continue showcasing how he develops, with his perspective being important as a bridge between the human and Na'vi worlds.

Another possible perspective is in Kiri, whose connection to Eywa has been growing more important with every new installment. Fire and Ash revealed Eywa's true form appears to be humanoid in nature, adding new questions to her true purpose and identity. Kiri's narration would be fitting, as it would more directly explore her connection to the god-like entity.

Neytiri would also be another intriguing perspective. She's the only Na'vi of the Sully family to not have any human connection in her bloodline, and she still harbors a complex relationship with humanity as a whole. Couple this with reported plans for her to visit Earth in Avatar 5, and her narration would be the perfect way to follow-up on Jake's legacy.

Avatar 4's Time Jump Is The Perfect Setup For A New Main Hero

The sequel already has the perfect excuse to more directly pass the torch to a new protagonist. As of writing, the first part of Avatar 4 has already been filmed. However, the rest of the movie remains in script format only, and for a very good reason. Cameron has confirmed Avatar 4 will have an eight-year time jump that happens around a third of the way into the film.

This time jump is the perfect excuse for the franchise to pass the mantle of main hero from Jake to somebody else. Whether that someone is Neytiri or one of his children, the leap in time would be the perfect excuse to give someone else the spotlight. It would also aid in the themes of family by passing the torch, especially if the new main character is one of Jake's children.

With two movies left in the franchise, Avatar 4 has a chance to break new ground by giving someone else the core lens instead of Jake. Given the movie's focus on the Sully family, one of them would be the perfect candidate for the passing of such an important torch in the franchise.