NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� 鈥淎vatar: The Way of Water鈥� may have finally arrived in theaters in 2022, but isn't done, yet.
The Walt Disney Co. on Tuesday pushed the release of 鈥淎vatar 3鈥� a year, bumping it from December 2024 to December 2025. The timeline is stretched even further for the next planned installments. 鈥淎vatar 4鈥� is now slated to hit theaters in December 2029; 鈥淎vatar 5鈥� is set to arrive in December 2031.
If those dates hold, the 鈥淎vatar鈥� film series will have stretched across the first four decades of the century. Director James Cameron, who launched 鈥淎vatar鈥� in 2009, has said he may not direct films 4 and 5. By December 2031, the 68-year-old Cameron would be 77. 鈥淎vatar鈥� and 鈥淎vatar: The Way of Water鈥� have collectively made more than $5.2 billion at the box office.
鈥淓ach 鈥楢vatar鈥� film is an exciting but epic undertaking that takes time to bring to the quality level we as filmmakers strive for and audiences have come to expect,鈥�
Disney on Tuesday shuffled plans for some of its biggest franchises. Two 鈥淪tar Wars鈥� film are planned for 2026. One was pushed from December 2025 to May 2026. Another was added for December 2026. The studio hasn't announced details on either untitled production.
The Marvel calendar was also remade Tuesday, as the studio continues to reshape its coming plans in its superhero kingdom. Most notably, 鈥淎vengers: Kang Dynasty" is being postponed from May 2025 to May 2026. That film, a pivotal release for Marvel, stars Jonathan Majors, the actor who . Majors' attorney has denied the charges and says he's innocent.
Other shifts in Marvel releases include most films being delayed a few months. 鈥淐aptain America: Brave New World鈥� will open in July 2024 instead of May 2024, after which comes 鈥淭hunderbolts鈥� in December 2024, 鈥淏lade鈥� in February 2025 and 鈥淔antastic Four鈥� in May 2025.
From Disney's 20th Century, another 鈥淎lien" film is now on the calendar, dated for August next year. And one movie is moving up: 鈥淒eadpool 3" will debut May 2024 instead of November next year.
Jake Coyle, The Associated Press
