Avatar 2: Stephen Lang’s Quaritch returns as a Recom in new image

Thanks to Empire Magazine, we’ve been getting some interesting news on Avatar 2: The Way of Water over the last couple weeks. Empire gave us our first look at Kate Winslet as Na’vi warrior Ronal, revealed that Sigourney Weaver is playing the teenage daughter of Jake and Neytiri, and even shared a quote from franchise creator James Cameron in which he said he might have another director take the helm of one or more the sequels he’s planning. Now Empire has also shared a picture that reveals how Stephen Lang’s character Quaritch, the main villain of the first Avatar, is back for the sequel. You can see Quaritch, sporting a new look, at the bottom of this article.

Empire reveals,

Stephen Lang is returning in the same role – this time in Na’vi form, his consciousness having been added to an avatar body. “He’s bigger, he’s bluer, he’s pissed off,” he laughs while speaking to Empire. “But there may possibly be an aspect of humility. When you take two Na’vi arrows in the chest, that’s gonna have some kind of effect on you.” It’s not just Quaritch who’s been given a big blue upgrade. In The Way Of Water, the RDA (Resources Development Administration) has a whole set of Recoms, aka Recombinants – avatars embedded with the memories of human soldiers.

The avatar Quaritch “is as lithe as they come. He can move with the same kind of cunning and feral quality that any of the Na’vi can.”

Directed by Cameron from a screenplay he wrote with Josh Friedman, Avatar: The Way of Water has the following synopsis:

Set 14 years after the events of the first film, Avatar: The Way of Water will find Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña) having started a family, but when the Resources Development Administration (RDA) returns to Pandora, the family is forced to flee to the reef. Jake and Neytiri’s family includes Na’vi kids Neteyam (Jamie Flatter), Lo’ak (Britain Dalton), and Tuktirey (Trinity Bliss), but they also have Miles Socorro (Jack Champion). Also known as Spider, the young boy was born at the military base on Pandora but was too small to return to Earth so he has been raised by Jake and Neytiri.

Avatar: The Way of Water is scheduled to reach theatres on December 16, 2022, followed by Avatar 3 on December 20, 2023. If these first two sequels do well enough, we’ll also be getting Avatar 4 on December 18, 2026, and Avatar 5 on December 22, 2028.