BAY LAKE, Fla. – Nearly 12 years since “Avatar” shattered box office records around the world, three cast members from the highly-anticipated upcoming new film stopped by Walt Disney World.
Jamie Flatters (Neteyam), Bailey Bass (Tsireya) and Jack Champion (Spider) explored the popular land inspired by the films, Pandora – The World of Avatar at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
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“Magical. Like, I mean, really, I know that sounds corny, but, like, it’s really just -- words can’t describe when you’re filming this and you’re in character, you’re in the world, in your head, and it becomes so real and then when you when you come here and it is, like, real,” explained Champion.
The three stars talked with News 6 ahead of next month’s release of “Avatar: The Way of Water.”
The new film further expands on the first film’s successful story.
“I think it’ll introduce a lot of new ecosystems. Like, you know, more and more of Pandora that people haven’t seen yet, like the ocean and jungles,” Champion pointed out.
Set more than a decade after the events of the first film, the film begins to tell the story of the Sully family (Jake, Neytiri, and their kids), the trouble that follows them, the lengths they go to keep each other safe, the battles they fight to stay alive and the tragedies they endure, the film’s creators described.
“There’s an overall theme of family and sticking together on what you would do for family and that no matter who you are, even if we’re not blood, we’re also kind of family together,” said Bass. “You know, just like the first. And this one, it’s still gonna be heartfelt. There’s something for everyone.”
The young stars join a long list of credits, including Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver and Kate Winslet.
See the trailer for the film below.
Director James Cameron returned for the new film and is set to direct the three future sequels.
“He sort of commits to the film process and experience like no other, like, just the time that we had to be with these characters in that amount of training is definitely very specific to this sort of film that we’re trying to achieve. He is trying to be groundbreaking, and he’s doing that,” said Flatters.
While in Pandora - The World of Avatar, all three actors were able to experience the land’s premiere attractions, including Avatar Flight of Passage and Na’vi River Journey.
In Avatar Flight of Passage, each guest goes on an exhilarating, wind-in-your-face experience on a winged mountain banshee over the awe-inspiring world of Pandora. Guests feel the banshee breathe beneath them as they soar through the forest and past floating mountains.
The actors said Flight of Passage has small hidden details and hints of things audiences will soon see in the new film.
“Yeah, there’s Easter eggs. You’re like, ‘Oh, this is gonna be a giant part of like the whole franchise,’ but no one knows that yet. So it’s interesting,” Champion concluded.
“Avatar: The Way of Water” is now in theaters.
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