Avatar: The Way of Water is coming home but no Disney+, DVD release just yet
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Bladders, rest easy, for Avatar: The Way of Water is swimming to the comforts of your home, where you can smash that pause button as many times as you like. For now, though, the film won't be available on Disney+, Blu-ray, or DVD.
The sequel to 2009's Avatar is getting a digital exclusive window before the physical media and streaming rollouts. That means the first and only way to watch The Way of Water at home for the time being will be by purchasing or renting it through all major digital platforms — including Prime Video, Apple TV, Vudu, and Movies Anywhere — starting March 28.
EW has reached out to a rep for Disney regarding physical media and streaming plans.
The digital release of the film will come with a bounty of bonus materials that delve into the making of Pandora, the new creatures, the motion-capture performances, and so much more.
20th Century Studios Ronal (Kate Winslet) and Tonowari (Cliff Curtis) lead the Metkayina clan in 'Avatar: The Way of Water'
Avatar: The Way of Water centers around the Sully family. Jake (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña) are now proud parents of Neteyam (Jamie Flatters), Lo'ak (Britain Dalton), Tuk, and their adopted daughter Kiri (Sigourney Weaver). Spider (Jack Champion), a human child, is technically not part of their family, director James Cameron clarified, though Jake and the kids would probably like that.
The Sullys flee their jungle home as the newly returned RDA tasks Col. Quaritch (Stephen Lang), whose consciousness and personality were uploaded to a Na'vi hybrid body, with taking out Jake. The family seeks refuge with the Metkayina, a clan of ocean-dwelling Na'vi run by tribal leaders Ronal (Kate Winslet) and Tonowari (Cliff Curtis).
Avatar: The Way of Water quickly hit major box-office milestones with its release in December. The film is currently the third highest-grossing movie of all time globally, having surpassed Cameron's previous record-holder Titanic. That means two out of the three highest-grossing movies ever are Avatar movies.
In the face of a runtime of 3 hours and 12 minutes, members of the cast spoke to EW about the right time to take a bathroom break during the movie. The answer that came up most was... you just don't.
"No bathroom breaks. You don't wanna miss a thing," said Bailey Bass, who plays a water Na'vi named Tsireya. "It's so, so brilliant, and every performance is so captivating. Just pee a lot beforehand and don't drink water, like, two hours before."
"There's a lot of water [in the movie] and when you have to pee it doesn't help," Champion mentioned.
"I don't think bathroom breaks are your biggest worry. I think that you have to bring tissues because it's very emotional," said Bliss.
Mark Fellman/20th Century Studios 'Avatar: The Way of Water' stars perform underwater.
Below, see the full list of bonus features, which varies by product and retailer:
Inside Pandora's Box
Building the World of Pandora – James Cameron and a team of talented artists combine years of research with their design skills to build the world of Pandora with new characters, creatures, indigenous clans, underwater environments and the take-no-prisoners hard-tech world of the RDA.
Capturing Pandora – James Cameron's approach to performance capture has the cast performing in a volume rigged with infrared cameras to capture their movement, and head rig cameras to capture emotion on their faces with only the boundaries of imagination to limit them.
The Undersea World of Pandora – Co-production designer Dylan Cole and his team conceive of the marine creatures required for Avatar: The Way of Water while James Cameron and his stunt team devise extraordinary means to bring those creatures to life in a performance capture tank.
The Challenges of Pandora's Waters – James Cameron tackles the "non-trivial challenge" of performance capture above and below the water's surface, utilizing a wave machine and current generator to reproduce ocean conditions, and underwater vehicles to replicate creature movement.
Pandora's Returning Characters – James Cameron reunites with his returning cast – Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver and Stephen Lang. Together they discuss the amazing evolution of their characters in Avatar: The Way of Water.
Pandora's Next Generation – Meet the talented young newcomers who have been cast as the next generation of Na'vi and follow them through the adventure of making Avatar: The Way of Water.
Spider's Web – James Cameron introduced the human character of Spider into the fabric of Pandora – thus creating a host of technological challenges on set… and an incredible journey for the young actor, Jack Champion.
Becoming Na'vi – The Avatar cast is immersed in the culture of the indigenous Na'vi, living off the land in the Hawaiian rainforest and training in a multitude of disciplines in preparation for their roles.
The Reef People of Pandora – In true James Cameron-style, the Metkayina reef clan has been developed with great attention to detail, bearing unique evolutionary traits and a culture – with new dwellings, new clothes and different way of life – all a result of living off the ocean.
Bringing Pandora to Life – Once James Cameron completes his virtual production process, every sequence is turned over to Wētā FX to bring Pandora to life – with unprecedented advancements in facial performance, environments and making CG water look real.
The RDA Returns to Pandora – Co-production designer Ben Procter and his team present an armada of new vehicles and human technologies that the RDA brings to Pandora – in concept design and with practical builds.
The New Characters of Pandora – Meet the important new characters of the Avatar saga played by Kate Winslet, Cliff Curtis, Edie Falco, Brendan Cowell and Jemaine Clement.
The Sounds of Pandora – Hear how James Cameron worked with composer Simon Franglen to create the distinctive music of The Way of Water while building on James Horner's brilliant score for Avatar, and learn how Chris Boyes created the immersive sounds of Pandora.
New Zealand – Pandora's Home – The production of the Avatar sequels is so thoroughly ensconced in New Zealand that James Cameron considers The Way of Water a "New Zealand film." Hear reflections from the cast and crew, including the remarkable New Zealand crew, on making the film.
More from Pandora's Box
Casting – Discover the screen tests that won the talented young cast their roles in Avatar: The Way of Water.
Stunts – The Avatar stunt team isn't just creating breathtaking action, they're driving the story. From racing underwater on ilus, flying the skies on ikrans, to maneuvering RDA speed boats, the stunt team leaves you breathless and wanting more.
The Lab – Explore the Lightstorm Lab, the backbone of virtual production for the Avatar films. Comprised of specialized teams, the Lab builds & supports every aspect of the production – environments, motion edit, Kabuki, sequence, post-viz and software development.
The Troupe – Avatar's Troupe is the Swiss Army Knife of acting, while playing dozens of roles on set, in the performance capture volume and on live-action sets, they bring life to Na'vi clans and RDA Recoms. They also play Na'vi-scale puppets on the live-action sets.
Marketing Materials & Music Video
"Nothing Is Lost (You Give Me Strength)" Music Video – Multi-Grammy-winning, music superstar, The Weeknd, performs his emotionally packed end title song in the official music video for the smash hit "Nothing Is Lost (You Give Me Strength)."
Theatrical Trailers 1 & 2 – Avatar: The Way of Water used two theatrical trailers to engage the audience. The first was a teaser trailer released 7 months before the film. The second was a standard trailer that premiered 5 weeks before the film's release.
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