Fans have been waiting long forJames Cameron’sAvatar: The Way of Water, but when details about the movie finally started trickling in what surprised many was the return ofSigourney Weaverin the new role of Kiri, a Na’vi teenager. While we have seen the character posters, not much is known about the character. Speaking toElizabeth BanksforInterview magazine, Weaver called playing the character her “biggest stretch.”
Departing from her original character, Dr. Grace Augustine, the doomed head of the Avatar Program in 2009sAvatar, Weaver’s new character, Kiri is a member of the Na’vi and Jake and Neytiri’s adopted daughter. The actor said that she cannot divulge the details about the movie, but she revealed that “it’s the biggest stretch I get to play in every possible way." She further told Banks, “I think if Jim Cameron didn’t know me really well, he wouldn’t have cast me as something as goofy as this.”
The actor further elaborated on her relationship with the Academy Award-winning director saying, “I know he’s going to present me with really unique challenges, and he’s not going to be shy about getting what he wants.” And with Kiri, the actor seemed to have cherished the challenge as she had to “work in a completely different way to play this character, a very physical way.” She spoke about having to do a lot of parkour, burpees, and freediving in preparation for the sequel. As a result, she can now hold her breath for six-and-a-half minutes. She added, “Don’t you love these jobs where you have to learn some really outlandish thing that you keep with you for the rest of your life? Freediving, especially, I’m grateful that we spent a year doing that.”
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Avatar: The Way of Waterwill take us back to the wondrous world of Pandora where we’ll see familiar characters Jake (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña) a decade after the events of the original film. They have nowformed a familywith their kids Neteyam (Jamie Flatters), Lo’ak (Britain Dalton), Tuktirey (Trinity Bliss), and the adopted Kiri. So, when an ancient threat resurfaces, Jake must fight a difficult war against humans. The trailer has shown us that the family theme is at the center of this iteration. Cameron took 13 years to present us with the follow-up of his magnum opus, and it’ll certainly have our nostalgic bones tickled.
Avatar: The Way of Waterhit cinemas on December 16. Meanwhile, check out the trailer below:
