New images have been revealed for Avatar: Fire and Ash, which provides new looks at the villain and the conflict in James Cameron’s latest sequel to the epic series. Though the full plot details have not yet been revealed, the third installment will introduce an Ash clan on Pandora. This Na’vi clan will present an additional layer to Pandora on top of the Omatikaya and Metkayina clans from the previous movies. Avatar: Fire and Ash is set for theatrical release on December 19.

Now, Empire has revealed two concept arts for Avatar: Fire and Ash, which show a look at the new clans and creatures. The first pH๏τo shows the Wind Traders, who will “corral gigantic Pandoran creatures to soar among the clouds.” The second pH๏τo introduces a key villain, Varang, who will be the leader of the Ash clan.Check out the images below:

In addition to the image reveal, Empire also revealed new quotes from Cameron explaining the concepts in these images. Cameron noted:

Varang is the leader of a people who have gone through an incredible hardship. She’s hardened by that. She will do anything for them, even things that we would consider to be evil. One thing we wanted to do in this film is not be black-and-white simplistic. We’re trying to evolve beyond the ‘all humans are bad, all Na’vi are good’ paradigm. [Oona Chaplin] is so good that I didn’t quite appreciate how good her performance is until we got the Wētā animation back. She’s an enemy, an adversarial character but [Chaplin] makes her feel so real and alive.They’re [The Wind Traders] nomadic traders, equivalent to the camel caravans of the Spice Road back in the Middle Ages. And you know, they’re just fun. Like all Na’vi, they live in a symbiosis with their creatures. If you’ve got any nautical blood in your veins, you’ll want to be on [their] ship.

What This Means For Avatar: Fire And Ash

New Creatures Will Be A Central Story Element

The look at Varang, as well as Cameron’s quote, seems to prove the long-held suspicion that the Ash people will be the main antagonists of Avatar: Fire and Ash. While it might not be as “simplistic” as saying that the Ash people are all bad, the director’s quote clearly states that the Ash people’s leader is one antagonist in Avatar 3. Whether the Ash people will end up working with the RDA remains to be seen, but to usurp the “‘all humans are bad, all Na’vi are good’ paradigm,”the clan might have to become a unique enemy.

The images also provide a good glimpse of how Avatar: Fire and Ash will employ new Pandoran creatures. This is key to exploring Pandora’s incredible biome and creatures like the tulkin to showcase Cameron’s own vision of the magnificent world. Cameron does not yet name the creatures that the Wind Traders work with in the third movie, but given the scale of the concept art, they are likely to be more impressive megafauna.

Our Take On These Avatar: Fire And Ash Images

Avatar 3‘s Na’vi Could Create Interesting Alliances & Enemies

In addition to the introduction of Varang, one compelling element of this concept art is that the Wind Trader scene is over water. While this could be a different aquatic setting on Pandora, this could also suggest that the ocean-dwelling Metkayina will still be a key group in Avatar: Fire And Ash. If Ronal, who is confirmed to return for Avatar 3, and other key characters in the Metkayina clan work alongside Jake, Neytiri, and their children, it could create interesting alliances going into this anticipated prequel.

Source: Empire