Stephen Lang recently wrapped on the third film in the Avatar franchise, and revealed to us how a death in The Way of Water means Fire and Ash will be the darkest movie yet.
From Avatar and Don’t Breathe to Conan the Barbarian, Stephen Lang is one of the best bad guys in the business.
He’ll next be seen tearing up the screen as the antagonist in Sisu 2 – aka Sisu: Road to Revenge – which hits screens on November 21, 2025.
While in December he stars in the biggest movie on the planet, Avatar: Fire and Ash, and he’s been discussing what to expect from the eagerly anticipated sequel. Meaning Way of Water SPOILERS ahead…
Why Avatar: Fire and Ash will be a movie about grief
According to Stephen Lang – who plays Miles Quaritch in the movies – Avatar: Fire and Ash is about the twin themes of grief and family, due to that shock death during The Way of Water.
“I’ve wrapped shooting, but we never consider ourselves, you know, wrapped really,” Lang recently told us of the Avatar shoot. “There’s always another door that we get ushered through.
“I was out there just less than a week ago… and the film looks absolutely stunning. I mean, look, it’s by no means a dis on Way of Water or the original Avatar – because I think they’re both extraordinary films – to say in this one really kind of the odds or the stakes are really, really increasing.
“So much of that has to do with the death of Neteyam, the eldest son of Jake and Neyiari, so grief becomes a major theme throughout this film.”
Lang also talked about the world-building by James Cameron and his team, and how that both informs the supports those themes.
“He creates a world in a way that has not been created before,” says Lang. “It’s stunningly beautiful and realized. And I think that the three dimensionality of it is extremely helpful, because it really does welcome the immersion from an audience.
“Also he’s dealing with very, very human themes. In the end these films are about family, you know, and that’s one of the reasons it’s got the universal appeal that it has.
“It’s not just about American politics. It’s not just about climate change. It’s about the deeper core issues that bind us together – who your family is, and who you choose to make part of your family.”
OpenAI strikes $38 billion AI training deal with Amazon