“Fire and Water: Making the Avatar Films” to premiere November 7, 2025, exclusively on Disney+

Movie NewsNews

16 Oct

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Disney+ has announced that the new two-part documentary Fire and Water: Making the Avatar Films will premiere November 7, 2025, exclusively on the platform. Fans can now watch the official trailer and download the key art, both available today.

Produced by 20th Century Studios and Lightstorm Entertainment, this in-depth documentary offers an unprecedented behind-the-scenes look at the making of the Oscar®-winning global phenomenon Avatar: The Way of Water, as well as an early glimpse at the upcoming sequel, Avatar: Fire and Ash. Featuring exclusive on-set footage, concept art, and new interviews with the cast and creative team, the series reveals the groundbreaking work and artistry behind James Cameron’s visionary universe.

The filmmakers travelled across the globe — from Manhattan Beach, San Pedro, Shasta Lake, and the Channel Islands to the Bahamas, Hawaii, and New Zealand — to document how the cast and crew perfected the art of underwater performance capture. Viewers will see the team master free-diving techniques inside a cutting-edge 680,000-gallon water tank, designed specifically for the films’ complex aquatic sequences.

Executive producers James Cameron and Rae Sanchini lead the project, with Thomas C. Grane serving as director/producer, Richard Brehm as writer/producer, Robert Glowacki as creative director, John Clisham as director of photography, Steven Wacks as director of photography (interviews), and Geoff Burdick as creative consultant.

https://youtu.be/hXvQ8cKJBdc?si=C8vT7igicICfax8S

The two-part series features interviews with a host of key contributors, including (in order of appearance): James Cameron (writer/director/producer/editor), Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Jon Landau (producer), Stephen Lang, Maria Battle Campbell (co-producer, 1st assistant director), Richard Baneham (executive producer, Lightstorm visual effects supervisor), Kate Winslet, Rae Sanchini (executive producer, president, Lightstorm Entertainment), Margery Simkin (casting director), Jamie Landau (co-producer), Stephen Rivkin (editor), Ryan Champney (visual production supervisor), Dylan Cole (production designer), Garrett Warren (2nd unit director, stunt coordinator), Rob Innes (founder, Jetovator, Inc.), John Rosengrant (co-founder, Legacy Effects), Chis Denison (stunts), Joey Natale (stunts, stunt driver), Steve Brown (assistant stunt coordinator), Richie Schwalm (on-set coordinator), JD Schwalm (performance capture special effects coordinator), Peter Zuccarini (underwater cinematographer), John Garvin (supervising dive master), Kirk Krack (performance free dive instructor), Sigourney Weaver, Cliff Curtis, William Trubridge (Metkayina stroke consultant), Britain Dalton, Trinity Jo-Li Bliss, Luke Freeborn (supervising art director), Ben Procter (production designer), Brigitte Yorke (co-producer, New Zealand unit production manager), Brendan Cowell, Jack Champion, Joe Letteri (senior visual effects supervisor), Eric Saindon (Wētā FX senior visual effects supervisor), and Nick Epstein (Wētā FX visual effects supervisor).