‘Avatar 2’ Teaser Debuts at CinemaCon, Wait Is This Movie Actually Happening?

What do you do with a movie like Avatar 2 whose long and drawn-out return has been like getting ghosted after having the best sex of your life before finally getting the booty call emoji you’ve been waiting for 13 years later? Do you even answer the call?

Premiering a trailer at CinemaCon, Disney wowed audiences with a glimpse of the underwater landscapes featured in Avatar 2: The Way of Water. Set ten years after the events of the first movie, the film follows the adventures of the Sully family (Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, and kids) as they face a new existential crisis. But who cares what the plot is, we just wanna see giant sea creatures battle mech warriors while exotic pelicans fly at us so fast we choke on a Twizzler.

So yeah, you could say expectations are high.

In 2009, Avatar was a gamechanger, a thrill ride that exhilarated even the most dubious of moviegoers. But the legacy of that first splash has been a letdown. Because the Avatar brand is one that relies on the theater experience, pushing boundaries through cinema technology and innovation. Without a follow-up, the lasting impact of the film has dwindled. (Has anyone even watched the entire thing at home in 2-D?)

Luckily, the team behind the franchise knows this better than anyone. According to a pre-recorded video, James Cameron told CinemaCon attendees that the new movie is, “designed for the biggest screen and the most immersive 3D available…to test the limits of what cinema can do.”

Amaze-balls. So on top of cutting-edge 3-D visual effects, expect an usher to throw a bucket of water on you every five minutes and occasionally slap your face with an array of palm fronds. If you want to grab a taste of the new Avatar experience, you’ll have to head to theaters where the trailer debuts exclusively ahead of Dr. Strange 2, out May 6.

As of now, the Avatar franchise has four movies planned. And judging by how long the sequel took to come out, we’ll all be dead by the time the finale arrives. That said, if the coming hype is any indication, our cryogenically frozen corpses will find a way to get tickets.

Cover Photo: 20th Century Studios