Disclaimer: This article contains major spoilers from Avatar: The Way of Water. If you haven’t watched the film yet, read our viewing guide and come back here after the end-credits roll.
It's finally time to return to Pandora! After thirteen years, James Cameron is taking us back to his visually stunning sci-fi world with Avatar: The Way of Water. And it's even more jaw-dropping than the original Avatar (2009) which shattered global box office records to become the highest-grossing movie of all time. The film featuring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Kate Winslet, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Cliff Kurtis and more takes a deep dive (quite literally) into Pandora as Jake and Neytiri "Na'vi" gate family life (sorry, not sorry). Between the expansive aquatic world of Pandora, a new clan and returning characters, a lot unfolds in the sprawling sequel. It is, after all, a three-hour-long movie. If you’re still reeling from everything that went down, we got your back. We're about to go over the story details and the ending to unpack what happened in Way of the Water and what it means for the Sullys because it's all about family.
The short answer - Is a LOT! The narrative of The Way of Water is stacked. Now for the long answer - It begins with a relatively peaceful time in Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri's (Zoe Saldaña) lives after they take down Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang) and co. They have kids - Neteyam (Jamie Flatters), Lo'ak (Britain Dalton), Tuk (Trinity Jo-Li), and their adopted daughter Kiri (Sigourney Weaver) whose birth is a mystery as Dr. Grace's avatar is her mother. There is also a human kid, Spider (Jack Champion) who spends most of his time with the Sullys. But all is clearly not well in Na’vi paradise because humans are the worst and they're back to colonise Pandora. A new unit of avatars who have memories of the RDA (Resources Development Administration) members bands together to take down Jake and among them is Quaritch who fans will remember as the main villian of the original film. And he is bent on crushing Jake. After a clash, Spider (turns out he is Quaritch’s kid who couldn’t be sent back to Earth as an infant) is kidnapped by the Colonel’s avatar. When Jake realises that he's the target and a danger to his family, he decides to leave the mantel of Toruk Makto and leave his clan to seek asylum with another Na’vi clan - the Metkayina. These are the "sea people" led by Tonowari (Cliff Curtis) and their Tsahik, Ronal (Kate Winslet). The Sullys must learn the way of water to blend in and continue to enjoy familial harmony.
The Sullys begin to immerse themselves in the Metkayina's cultures by the reef as they learn to swim, dive, breathe and communicate underwater. They also learn how to ride the Ilu - a creature that can fly and swim. A major subplot here is dedicated to the Tulkuns, enormous sea creatures who are peaceful in nature. They form strong connections with the Metakyina clan. Lo'ak ends up forming a bond with an outcast Tulkun called Paykan. Meanwhile, Quaritch's avatar is zeroing in on Jake with some help from all the intel Spider has about the Na'vi. At first, Quaritch begins raiding Na'vi settlements in search of Jake. As he gets closer, he devices a much more sinister plan. He teams up with a crew of whalers that hunt Tulkuns for Amrita (a gel-like liquid that's the key to stopping ageing and the most expensive substance for humans). The idea is to kill Tulkuns to draw out the Metkayina who consider the whale-like creatures as family. Of course, the plan works and the Metkayina take up arms against the humans/avatars in retaliation.
To get to Jake, Quaritch holds his kids - Lo'ak, Tuk and Tonowari-Ronal's daughter Tsireya (Bailey Bass) hostage on the whalers’ ship. Just when Jake is ready to give himself up, Paykan owing to his bond with Lo'ak comes to his rescue. This launches a full-blown attack that brings us to the final battle. At the end of Avatar: The Way of Water, Jake, Tonowari and the Na'vi warriors attack the humans with all they’ve got while Paykan topples the ship. It’s almost a win. But Lo'ak tells Neteyam that they must retrieve Spider while they can. They manage to save Spider but in the process, Neteyam gets shot and dies. Meanwhile, Kiri and Tuk are held hostage by Quaritch. Devastated, Jake and Neytiri are forced to power through their grief in order to continue their fight and boy do they rain hell on them! In a whistle-worthy sequence, we see the duo take down Quaritch's crew till they come face-to-face with him. Quaritch puts a knife to Kiri's throat to threaten them and in a shocking move, Neytiri, driven by range, does the same with Spider. The Colonel surprisingly lets go of Kiri but it doesn't end there.
To finish the fight once and for all, Jake takes on Quaritch one-on-one. While the ship is sinking, Jake gets trapped in a flooded room. Luckily, Lo'ak goes back to save him and uses his new-learned knowledge of water to save him. Elsewhere, Neytiri is trapped with Tuk in another chamber and is rescued by Kiri who seems to be able to harness Eywa's power which helps her command fish and moves sea objects at will, among other things.
“A son for a son”
Here come the waterworks. The Sullys are finally reunited in the climax of the film. But what about Spider and Quaritch? Well, Spider ends up saving Quaritch before joining the Sullys. So the villain is still out there although Spider chooses the Na'vi life. Jake declares "a son, for a son" as the family reunites in an emotional embrace.
The film leaves a lot of unanswered questions. But one of the biggest revelations in Avatar: The Way of Water is about Kiri's abilities. Throughout the film, her connection with Eywa is teased. She manages to bond with the flora and fauna around her with relative ease compared to her siblings when they first get to the island. Moreover, she was able to command objects and not only use this power to save her mother and sister but also use it as an attack during the battle. As mentioned earlier, her birth remains a mystery. There's a high chance that the range of her abilities will be explored further in upcoming installments.
Nope, the Avatar sequel does not have a post-credits scene. Feel free to marvel at the credits, head for the nearest exit after the film is over or finally take a much-needed bathroom break. The Way of Water might not offer a teaser of what's coming next in Cameron's universe but the ending leaves a lot of loose ends and room for speculation. It's safe to say there's plenty of time to go over theories till the next installment arrives.
Avatar: The Way of Water is currently in theatres.
SEE ALSO: Avatar: The Way of Water: Kate Winslet on breaking Tom Cruise's record
It's finally time to return to Pandora! After thirteen years, James Cameron is taking us back to his visually stunning sci-fi world with Avatar: The Way of Water. And it's even more jaw-dropping than the original Avatar (2009) which shattered global box office records to become the highest-grossing movie of all time. The film featuring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Kate Winslet, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Cliff Kurtis and more takes a deep dive (quite literally) into Pandora as Jake and Neytiri "Na'vi" gate family life (sorry, not sorry). Between the expansive aquatic world of Pandora, a new clan and returning characters, a lot unfolds in the sprawling sequel. It is, after all, a three-hour-long movie. If you’re still reeling from everything that went down, we got your back. We're about to go over the story details and the ending to unpack what happened in Way of the Water and what it means for the Sullys because it's all about family.
To begin with, what happened in Avatar: The Way of Water?
The short answer - Is a LOT! The narrative of The Way of Water is stacked. Now for the long answer - It begins with a relatively peaceful time in Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri's (Zoe Saldaña) lives after they take down Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang) and co. They have kids - Neteyam (Jamie Flatters), Lo'ak (Britain Dalton), Tuk (Trinity Jo-Li), and their adopted daughter Kiri (Sigourney Weaver) whose birth is a mystery as Dr. Grace's avatar is her mother. There is also a human kid, Spider (Jack Champion) who spends most of his time with the Sullys. But all is clearly not well in Na’vi paradise because humans are the worst and they're back to colonise Pandora. A new unit of avatars who have memories of the RDA (Resources Development Administration) members bands together to take down Jake and among them is Quaritch who fans will remember as the main villian of the original film. And he is bent on crushing Jake. After a clash, Spider (turns out he is Quaritch’s kid who couldn’t be sent back to Earth as an infant) is kidnapped by the Colonel’s avatar. When Jake realises that he's the target and a danger to his family, he decides to leave the mantel of Toruk Makto and leave his clan to seek asylum with another Na’vi clan - the Metkayina. These are the "sea people" led by Tonowari (Cliff Curtis) and their Tsahik, Ronal (Kate Winslet). The Sullys must learn the way of water to blend in and continue to enjoy familial harmony.
The Sullys begin to immerse themselves in the Metkayina's cultures by the reef as they learn to swim, dive, breathe and communicate underwater. They also learn how to ride the Ilu - a creature that can fly and swim. A major subplot here is dedicated to the Tulkuns, enormous sea creatures who are peaceful in nature. They form strong connections with the Metakyina clan. Lo'ak ends up forming a bond with an outcast Tulkun called Paykan. Meanwhile, Quaritch's avatar is zeroing in on Jake with some help from all the intel Spider has about the Na'vi. At first, Quaritch begins raiding Na'vi settlements in search of Jake. As he gets closer, he devices a much more sinister plan. He teams up with a crew of whalers that hunt Tulkuns for Amrita (a gel-like liquid that's the key to stopping ageing and the most expensive substance for humans). The idea is to kill Tulkuns to draw out the Metkayina who consider the whale-like creatures as family. Of course, the plan works and the Metkayina take up arms against the humans/avatars in retaliation.
What happened at the ending of Avatar: The Way of Water?
To get to Jake, Quaritch holds his kids - Lo'ak, Tuk and Tonowari-Ronal's daughter Tsireya (Bailey Bass) hostage on the whalers’ ship. Just when Jake is ready to give himself up, Paykan owing to his bond with Lo'ak comes to his rescue. This launches a full-blown attack that brings us to the final battle. At the end of Avatar: The Way of Water, Jake, Tonowari and the Na'vi warriors attack the humans with all they’ve got while Paykan topples the ship. It’s almost a win. But Lo'ak tells Neteyam that they must retrieve Spider while they can. They manage to save Spider but in the process, Neteyam gets shot and dies. Meanwhile, Kiri and Tuk are held hostage by Quaritch. Devastated, Jake and Neytiri are forced to power through their grief in order to continue their fight and boy do they rain hell on them! In a whistle-worthy sequence, we see the duo take down Quaritch's crew till they come face-to-face with him. Quaritch puts a knife to Kiri's throat to threaten them and in a shocking move, Neytiri, driven by range, does the same with Spider. The Colonel surprisingly lets go of Kiri but it doesn't end there.
To finish the fight once and for all, Jake takes on Quaritch one-on-one. While the ship is sinking, Jake gets trapped in a flooded room. Luckily, Lo'ak goes back to save him and uses his new-learned knowledge of water to save him. Elsewhere, Neytiri is trapped with Tuk in another chamber and is rescued by Kiri who seems to be able to harness Eywa's power which helps her command fish and moves sea objects at will, among other things.
“A son for a son”
Here come the waterworks. The Sullys are finally reunited in the climax of the film. But what about Spider and Quaritch? Well, Spider ends up saving Quaritch before joining the Sullys. So the villain is still out there although Spider chooses the Na'vi life. Jake declares "a son, for a son" as the family reunites in an emotional embrace.
But wait, Kiri can harness Eywa’s powers?
The film leaves a lot of unanswered questions. But one of the biggest revelations in Avatar: The Way of Water is about Kiri's abilities. Throughout the film, her connection with Eywa is teased. She manages to bond with the flora and fauna around her with relative ease compared to her siblings when they first get to the island. Moreover, she was able to command objects and not only use this power to save her mother and sister but also use it as an attack during the battle. As mentioned earlier, her birth remains a mystery. There's a high chance that the range of her abilities will be explored further in upcoming installments.
Does Avatar: The Way of Water have a post-credits scene?
Nope, the Avatar sequel does not have a post-credits scene. Feel free to marvel at the credits, head for the nearest exit after the film is over or finally take a much-needed bathroom break. The Way of Water might not offer a teaser of what's coming next in Cameron's universe but the ending leaves a lot of loose ends and room for speculation. It's safe to say there's plenty of time to go over theories till the next installment arrives.
Avatar: The Way of Water is currently in theatres.
SEE ALSO: Avatar: The Way of Water: Kate Winslet on breaking Tom Cruise's record
Loading Next Article...
SHOW COMMENTS