Avatar 3 has recruited several familiar faces to play its alien Na'vi characters. The third Avatar film, subtitled Fire and Ash, continues the story of the Sully family on the fictional planet of Pandora, as they integrate with the Metkayina clan. The Sullys also face new threats in the form of the Mangkwan clan, also known as the Ash People.
James Cameron's sci-fi franchise already features a stellar lineup of Hollywood stars, but Avatar 3 is set to expand the roster yet again.
Avatar 3 - Photos of Every Main Character & Actor
Sam Worthington - Jake Sully
First introduced as a paraplegic marine sent in his brother's place on a research mission to Pandora, Sam Worthington's Jake Sully evolved into the hero of the franchise after he chose to permanently merge with his Na'vi avatar and join the clan to help protect Pandora from the RDA's destructive plans.
In Avatar: The Way of Water, Jake and Neytiri had begun a clan of their own, becoming parents to five children. After relocating his family to the oceanside with the Metkayina clan, Jake had to face his past once again as his old colonel, Miles Quaritch, sought revenge for his death, which will continue into Avatar 3.
Zoe Saldaña - Neytiri
Oscar-winner Zoe Saldaña's Neytiri has become the emotional core of the Avatar franchise, as the strong Na'vi warrior fights with equal passion to both love and protect her family.
Avatar: The Way of Water wrought devastation for Neytiri as she lost her clan, her home, and one of her sons. Overcoming the grief for her child will be a big plot point for Neytiri in Avatar: Fire and Ash.
Britain Dalton - Lo'ak
Young star Britain Dalton plays Jake and Neytiri's second son, Lo'ak, in Avatar: The Way of Water and Avatar: Fire and Ash. Lo'ak formed a burgeoning romantic connection with Tsireya when his family joined the Metkayina, and he also bonded with the outcast Tulkun, Payakan.
Dalton's Lo'ak will also have an expanded role in Avatar 3 as the new narrator of the film.
Sigourney Weaver - Kiri
After portraying the human scientist Grace Augustine in 2009's Avatar, director James Cameron found a way for Sigourney Weaver to return to the franchise in The Way of Water, by playing Kiri, the adopted daughter of Jake and Neytiri and the biological child of Grace's Avatar.
Kiri exhibited a strong connection to the deity Ewya in Avatar: The Way of Water and almost died after connecting to the Metkayina's spirit tree. Cameron hinted that more of Kiri's mysterious origins will be explored in the third Avatar film.
Trinity Bliss - Tuktirey
The youngest of the Sullys, Tutkirey "Tuk", is the innocent heart of the family, supporting each of her siblings in turn, and is distressed whenever they clash. Like the rest of the Sully family, Tuk is grieving the loss of her older brother, Neteyam in Avatar: Fire and Ash.
Jack Champion - Spider
Another adoptive member of the Sully family, Jack Champion's (Scream VI) Spider has always been the odd one out as the only human child among the Sullys. Avatar: The Way of Water revealed that Spider is the biological son of Miles Quaritch, and he and his father formed a tenuous relationship throughout the second film, with Spider eventually choosing to rescue Quaritch from the brink of death.
Spider still rejected Quaritch's offer to be part of his family, choosing the Sullys, but that will no doubt come back to bite him in Avatar: Fire and Ash.
Bailey Bass - Tsireya
Bailey Bass' Tsireya was introduced in Avatar: The Way of Water as one of the children of Metkayina clan leaders Tonowari and Ronal. She was instrumental in inducting the Sully children into the Metkayina's way of life and ended up forming a connection with Lo'ak.
Cliff Curtis - Tonowari
The chief of the Metkayina clan, Tonowari (played by Fear the Walking Dead's Cliff Curtis), offered the Sullys refuge in Avatar: The Way of Water, and then fought alongside them to defend it from the forces of the RDA. Tonowari and Jake struck up something of a friendship in the second film, with both being leaders of their clans.
Kate Winslet - Ronal
After collaborating with James Cameron on Titanic, Kate Winslet gained a role in Avatar: The Way of Water as Ronal, the spiritual leader of the Metkayina tribe and the pregnant wife of Tonowari. Winslet famously learned to hold her breath for 7 minutes to film underwater scenes as Ronal.
Her character was established as a strong-willed but cautious leader, initially wary of the Sully family; she eventually establishes a bond with Kiri, sharing her interest in the spiritual wonders of Pandora.
Filip Geljo - Ao'nung
Tonowari and Ronal's son, Ao'nung (played by Filip Geljo), began as a bully to the Sully family, teasing them for their forest-dwelling features, including their tails and fingers. Eventually, however, Ao'nung comes around and becomes a friend to the Sully children.
Stephen Lang - Miles Quaritch
The overarching villain of the Avatar franchise is back in Avatar 3. Stephen Lang's Miles Quaritch began as the military leader of the RDA, responsible for leading the charge against the Omatikaya clan and forcing them to relocate from the area where the RDA wanted to mine the rare mineral Unobtainium.
After Jake and Neytiri killed Quaritch in Avatar, he was reborn in a Na'vi avatar body and sought revenge upon them, leading the RDA to the reefs to try and capture the precious Tulkun. Quaritch continues as the antagonist in Avatar: Fire and Ash, this time allying himself with the Ash people and their leader, Varang.
Oona Chaplin - Varang
One of the new villains in Avatar: Fire and Ash is Varang, the fiery leader of the Ash clan, played by Oona Chaplin (Game of Thrones). Varang is a hardened and dedicated leader who will do anything for her people, including allying herself with Quaritch against the Sullys.
Matt Gerald - Lyle Wainfleet
After fighting and dying with the RDA against the Na'vi in Avatar, Matt Gerald reprised his role as Lyle Wainfleet, a soldier reborn into an avatar body. He was recruited to continue the RDA's plans.
Lyle's fate was left unknown after the battle between the RDA and Metkayina in Avatar: The Way of Water, but Gerald's return in Avatar 3 confirms that Lyle will be back.
Giovanni Ribisi - Parker Selfridge
Giovanni Ribisi's corporate mogul, Parker Selfridge, was forced off the planet of Pandora after his actions in Avatar, but he appeared in recording form in Avatar: The Way of Water, instructing his avatar recombinants on their duties for the RDA.
The actor will reprise this role again in Avatar: Fire and Ash, and it's been hinted that this time he may make a return to the sci-fi planet in person.
Joel David Moore - Norm Spellman
Human scientist Norm Spellman (Joel David Moore) became one of Jake's closest allies in Avatar, eventually becoming the head of the Avatar program and a leader among the remaining humans on Pandora.
Norm stayed in touch with the Sullys over the years and was flown in to help Kiri after her seizure in Avatar: The Way of Water, demonstrating that he remains a close ally of the Na'vi family.
CCH Pounder - Mo'at
CCH Pounder plays Mo'at in Avatar the spiritual leader of the Omatikaya clan and the mother of Neytiri. Mo'at remained with her clan after Jake and Neytiri fled to the reefs in the second film, but her return in Avatar: Fire and Ash suggests a family reunion will be in store in the third movie.
Edie Falco - Frances Ardmore
Nurse Jackie star Edie Falco joined the Avatar franchise in the second film as Frances Ardmore, the military successor to Miles Quaritch. Ardmore represents the RDA's interests and, in the second film, was shown utilizing ruthless tactics to get results, such as tormenting Sully's adopted son, Spider.
Brendan Cowell - Mick Scoresby
Brendan Cowell's Mick Scoresby had one of the most memorable moments in Avatar: The Way of Water, after his human marine captain lost an arm in battle to Payakan, in a sweet moment of revenge.
Scoresby and his fellow hunters will be back in Avatar: Fire and Ash, no doubt with a score to settle with the Tulkun.
Jemaine Clement - Ian Garvin
Ian Garvin (played by What We Do in the Shadows' Jemaine Clement) was an RDA field researcher introduced in Avatar: The Way of Water, who was hired to assist Mick Scoresby in hunting Pandora's Tulkuns. While he didn't seem happy about it, Garvin was forced to cooperate with the RDA or risk having his laboratory shut down.
Garvin will be back alongside Scoresby in Avatar: Fire and Ash, suggesting more threats are in store for Pandora's ocean wildlife.
David Thewlis - Peylak
The other significant new addition to Avatar: Fire and Ash is legendary actor David Thewlis, who is introduced in the film as Peylak, the leader of the Na'vi wind trader tribe, the Tlalim. Peylak has to lead the Tlalim through tricky political dealings in Avatar: Fire and Ash, as tensions between the Ash people and the Sullys and Metkayina heat up, with his wind tribe potentially caught in the middle.
Thewlis is confirmed to reprise his role as Peylak in the fourth Avatar film.
Avatar: Fire and Ash is scheduled for release in cinemas on December 19, 2025.
