The trailer for Avatar: Fire and Ash has spawned a popular theory about an all-new Pandoran god who could rival Eywa. Eywa is the god of Pandora in the Avatar universe, the All-Mother who guides the consciousness and life of the planet. However, it may not be the franchise’s only supernatural enтιтy.
As the epic third film in James Cameron’s five-movie saga, Avatar: Fire and Ash recently released its first trailer. It shows the first glimpses at the continuation of Colonel Quaritch’s rivalry with the Sully family, carrying on the explosive ending of Avatar: The Way of Water. It also shows off the antagonistic Ash People, a group of fire-based Na’vi who will feud with the Sullys throughout the film.
Each Avatar movie always spends a lot of time setting up and exploring the culture of each Na’vi clan, and the Ash People will undoubtedly be no different. In fact, the trailer may have revealed one major detail about the Ash People’s religious beliefs, according to this theory.
Avatar 3’s New Villains Suggest Eywa Isn’t Pandora’s Only Greater Power
The Mangkwan Might Worship A New, More Destructive God
The main villain of Avatar: Fire and Ash is Varang, the leader of the Mangkwan, known as the Ash People. Varang and the Mangkwan are presented as being in opposition to Eywa in the first trailer, seemingly holding a religious dispute with the other Na’vi. The trailer also shows that Varang has the magical ability to control fire, suggesting that the Mangkwan have supernatural help.
As it turns out, this supernatural help could be another enтιтy like Eywa. Varang actor Oona Chaplin was interviewed by Empire recently, where she discussed her character’s role in the upcoming film, and how Varang has influenced her people after a tragedy. She said:
They have a bunch of unresolved trauma. They got hit by a natural disaster and what Varang did was say, ‘Well, f*ck Eywa.’ She basically goes towards a different power, and tries to harness that, and in so doing kind of raises her people out of misery. It’s easy to fall into the villain mentality, but actually she’s the hero of her people. Because she’s saved them out of misery and starvation and begging.
Chaplin’s comments about Varang’s atтιтude toward Eywa confirm that she is opposed to the Pandoran god. The actor’s references to pursuing a “different power” could have a lot of meanings, but the most popular theory is that this is in reference to another god. An enтιтy like Eywa that the Ash People worship would make sense, as Pandora has an actual supernatural deity already. However, this enтιтy could instead represent destruction.
While another Pandoran god is most in line for the Avatar franchise, this “different power” could also refer to human technology. Varang is seen using a flamethrower in the trailer, hinting that the Ash People will get weapons from the humans at some point. However, this could also be because the humans are interested in the Ash People’s new god, as it could help take down Eywa in Avatar: Fire and Ash.
