The first look at the Avatar: Fire and Ash villain Varang has been revealed. Played by Game of Thrones star Oona Chaplin, Varang is the leader of Na’vi’s Mangkwan Clan, also referred to as the Ash People, and is set to be a villain in Avatar: Fire and Ash‘s story.

The Avatar: Fire and Ash trailer will not be publicly shown until the theatrical debut of The Fantastic Four: First Steps, but the trailer was revealed during a Disney screening. Varang is heard saying, “Your goddess has no dominion here” toward the end of the trailer.

Now, Avatar has unveiled the first look at half of Varang’s face while promoting the trailer being exclusively shown with the new Fantastic Four movie later this week. Varang has red war paint drawn across the center of her forehead and down to her nose, which is presumably a symbol of the Ash People. Check out the image below:

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What This Means For Avatar: Fire And Ash

A Different Kind Of Villain Emerges On Pandora

After featuring Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang) as the primary villain in the two previous Avatar movies, the third installment puts a Na’vi antagonist at the center of the story. Quaritch will still play an important role in Fire and Ash, but Varang is also being set up to have a major part to play.

So far, the franchise has largely focused on the Na’vi being in conflict with Quaritch and the humans in Avatar‘s RDA, and while this will continue, now there will be conflict between the Na’vi clans as well. The trailer description already teases that conflict being rooted in differing beliefs, and Varang taunts other characters about their goddess.

While Varang doesn’t look drastically different from other Na’vi, she and the Ash People are poised to be unlike any members of the alien species that have been shown before. She will likely become one of Avatar‘s most powerful characters and will likely threaten the survival of Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña), and their family.

Our Take On Varang’s First Look

Avatar 3 Marketing Is Ramping Up

With Avatar: The Way of Water having been released almost three years ago now, the wait for Fire and Ash has felt long, even though it is much shorter than the hiatus between the two previous films. With a Fire and Ash trailer description and first look at Varang released on the same day, it is starting to feel like the wait is almost over.

Making the trailer initially exclusive to the theatrical release of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s next movie is a smart move that will lead to even more ticket sales. Varang’s full face should be revealed in the Avatar: Fire and Ash trailer, and audiences will get to see new corners of Pandora for the first time in years.

Source: Avatar/X