Avatar fans settled in for a long wait after James Cameron announced the first of the four planned sequels wouldn’t hit its original 2018 release date. As the director explained it, they’re filming these babies en masse, which requires a bit more patience than usual from moviegoers. The director and his crew have long since returned to work, though, sketching out new visions of Pandora and beyond. And it looks like the cast will join them soon—at least, according to Sigourney Weaver. The actress, who played Dr. Grace Augustine in the first film, tells The Hollywood Reporter that filming on Avatar 2 is slated to begin later this year: “We’re starting training, and we’re starting—hmm, I probably can’t say anything. We will be actually shooting it by the fall.”
Weaver also assures fans that the sequels will be well worth the wait, because “these scripts are so amazing, I’m not worried about [disappointing fans] at all… They’re so worth it. They’re well worth waiting for. I’m not worried about that at all. We’re trying to get it done as quickly as possible.” What Weaver is somewhat concerned about is the execution, but only because the plans are “so ambitious.” With the Weaver seal of approval now affixed to the franchise, all Cameron has to do is finish/start shooting the four films.