If you were at all worried about what you would do in the future without enough Avatar sequels to last you until the end of time, good news: We'll soon have enough Avatar sequels to last a lifetime, at the very least. It's close enough, right? According to E! Online, Zoe Saldana and Sam Worthington have both signed on to return for three more Avatar films, after they starred in the original film directed by James Cameron in 2009.
So, what does this mean? Plot details haven't quite been revealed yet — in fact, the films' scripts haven't even been written yet — but the schedule of when they'll be hitting the big screen is finalized: Avatar 2 will be released in Dec. 2016, Avatar 3 in Dec. 2017, and Avatar 4 all the way in Dec. 2018. In other words, we'll going to have this franchise for about another five years.
Confirmation of Saldana and Worthington's participation in the next three movies was revealed in a press release: "Jake Sully is a rare combination of passion, strength, street smarts and soul, which requires a lot from an actor. Sam brought to the role a combination of sensitivity, vulnerability and strength," Director Cameron said. "Zoe captured every aspect of the character I envisioned, bringing to Neytiri a mix of delicacy, fierceness and incredible physicality. I am beyond pleased they'll be returning with us to Pandora."
As for behind-the-scenes: Cameron will direct and produce all three with Jon Landau, and a writing team consisting of War of the Worlds' Josh Friedman, Rise of the Planet of the Apes' Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver and Savages' Shane Salerno has been hired to pen the scripts for the films.
