Although the story of theAvatarfranchise is tough to predict,Avatar: Fire and Ash’s darkest potential twist would allow the series to pay off a setup from the original movie. When 2009’sAvatarwas released, critics were quick to concede that director James Cameron’s blockbuster was as visually stunning as the outspoken director had promised. However,Avatar’s plot was criticized for its familiarity and lack of surprises. Fortunately, themany upcomingAvatarsequelscan disprove this claim as the series continues to explore Pandora. Already,Avatar’s first sequel complicated both the story of the series and its morality.
This Avatar 3 Character Return Means The Franchise’s Biggest Mystery Will Be Resolved
Avatar 3 bringing back Joel David Moore’s Norm Spellman proves that Kiri’s mysterious Avatar: The Way of Waters powers may soon be explained.
By the timeAvatar: The Way of Water’s endingarrived, the simple storyline ofAvatarhad grown a lot more complicated. The original movie’s villain, Miles Quaritch, was revived as an avatar himself. This meant there were now villainous avatars in the world of the series, while the revelation that Quaritch had an estranged human son named Spider complicated things further. Although Spider grew up around Jake and Neytiri’s children and was close with them, he ended up saving his father’s life duringAvatar: The Way of Water’s climactic battle. This set upAvatar: Fire and Ash’s story.
Avatar 3’s Quartich Could Kill Jake Sully
Jack Champion Promised A Big Sequel Bombshell
Now that Quaritch has survived the events ofAvatar: The Way of Water, there is a surprisingly good chance that he will successfully finish the mission he began back in the original movie.If Quaritch kills Jake, Neytiri could kill him for a second timeafter the heroine originally shot him inAvatar’s ending. The thought ofAvatar: Fire and Ashkilling off Jake Sully might seem surprising since he was the original protagonist of the series, but Jake became a less central figure in the franchise asAvatar: The Way of Water’s story continued. His death could be perfectly timed.
Avatar: The Way of Water’s plot focuses primarily on Jake’s son, Lo’ak, and Kiri, whose strange powers seem to mark her as a potential savior for the Na’vi. Now,Avatar: Fire and Ashneeds Lo’ak’s Tulkunstory more than Jake’s return. Similarly, the sequel must prioritize its explanation of Kiri’s powers over more screen time for the original movie’s hero. Spider’s actor Jack Champion toldThe Hollywood ReporterthatAvatar: Fire and Ash’s script takes a “Hard left turn” with a huge twist he didn’t predict. It stands to reason that this revelation could be Jake’s death.
Jake’s Avatar 3 Death Makes Perfect Sense
The Franchise Needs To Outgrow Its Original Hero
To follow in the footsteps of theStar Warsmovies, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, or any of its other major blockbuster competitors,theAvatarmovies need to outgrow Jake Sully. Although Jake was central to the original movie’s plot, his story also centered around the fact he needed to learn to fight for something bigger than himself.Avatar’s story focuses on Jake deciding to prioritize the Na’vi over his own survival, so it makes perfect thematic sense for him to sacrifice his life to help save Pandora’s native residents. This also allows more creative freedom to tell other characters' stories.
As far back as 2009, critics complained that Jake received too much story focus.
While somedark elements of Jake’sAvatarstorywere cut from the first two movies, it is fair to say that the character has gotten a lot of screen time. As far back as 2009, critics complained that Jake received too much story focus when there were more investing characters, both human and Na’vi, that the franchise could prioritize. This only grew truer inAvatar: The Way of Water. Lo’ak struggled to find his place among the Metkayina, Kiri had a hard time coming to terms with her status as an avatar, and Neytiri refused to acknowledge Spider as family.
Quaritch Killing Jake Sets Up A Perfect Neytiri Arc
Neytiri Saved Jake From Quaritch In Avatar
In contrast,Jake didn’t really get up to much inAvatar: The Way of Water.He argued with his children quite a bit, but this was hardly one of the movie’s strong suits. WhileNeytiri’sAvatar: Fire and Ashstorymay see her become an outright villain as she attempts to get revenge on Spider, Jake’s love interest at least has a clear character arc. Jake, in contrast, is ready for retirement. Although Jake convinced her that not all humans were monsters, Quaritch’s success in killing him this time could reverse that and turn Neytiri into a ruthless killer.
Thus, Jake’s death could potentially improve Neytiri’s role inAvatar: Fire and Ash. Neytiri’s burning hatred of the RDA already drives her but, if Quartich managed to get revenge on Jake and kill him, this would bring her arc full circle. Jake’s dwindling relevance in the franchise means that his death would be perfectly timed inAvatar: Fire and Ash, as he remains central but doesn’t need more story focus. His death could also result in Spider becoming estranged from Lo’ak and Kiri. This dramatic twist would give Neytiri’s hatred of Spider more justfication while driving Spider into Quartich’s arms.
Avatar’s Villain Could Still Be Redeemed Thanks To Spider
Although this storyline could work well as it would turn Spider into a villain,there is one major problem with Quartich killing Jake inAvatar: Fire and Ash. WhileAvatar: The Way of Water’s underrated villainGeneral Ardmore is pragmatic and cold, Quartich has a begrudging respect for the Na’vi. As such, his stint as an avatar and Spider’s decision to save his life could result in an unlikely about-face from the franchise villain. Quartich could potentially be redeemed in theAvatarsequels, but this is unlikely to happen if he kills Jake inAvatar: Fire and Ash.
Avatar: Fire and Ashis set to be released on July 30, 2025.
Technically, Quaritch killing Jake doesn’t necessarily preclude him from experiencing a redemption arc. However, his redemption wouldn’t be as satisfying after this huge twist, and Neytiri killing him would be a much more fitting fate. As such, the third movie in the series must choose wisely.Avatar: Fire and Ashcould potentially see Quaritch finally defeat Jake, only to be killed for good by Jake’s heartbroken love interest, Neytiri. However,Avatar: Fire and Ashcould also bring theAvatarfranchise full circle by making one of its worst villains an unlikely hero if the sequel instead redeems Quaritch’s character.
