Sequels
In 2006, Cameron stated that if Avatar were successful, he hoped to make two sequels to the film.[237] In 2010, he said the film's widespread success confirmed that he will.[25] The prospect of sequels was something he planned from the start, going so far as to include certain scenes in the film for future story followups.[237][238] Cameron said he wants to make the sequel "cheaper and faster" and that the story will be a continuation of the characters introduced in Avatar.[234]
Though plots for future sequels have not been laid out yet, Cameron stated that they are going to widen the universe while exploring other moons of Polyphemus.[234] The first sequel would continue to follow the characters of Jake and Neytiri.[239] Cameron implied that the humans would return as the antagonists of the story. "I expect that those nasty humans didn't go away forever," he said.[240] Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana have signed on to reprise their roles in future sequels, and Stephen Lang, who played Colonel Miles Quaritch, believes his character could make a return: "You think those two arrows in my chest are going to stop me from coming back?" Lang told Entertainment Weekly, "Nothing's over so long as they've got my DNA."[238] In late Februrary 2010, Sigourney Weaver, who played Dr. Grace Augustine, announced the possibility of her return for a sequel in an interview for the Le Grand Journal TV show in Paris.[241]
When being interviewed by AP on the red carpet of the 82nd Academy Awards, Cameron stated "if I were to start Avatar 2 tomorrow, it would still be three years away."[242]