Warning: This text accommodates delicate spoilers for 2025’s Avatar: Hearth and Ash, now in theaters.Avatar: Hearth and Ash star Oona Chaplin discusses how Varang has broadened her horizons and what this may imply for her character in future sequels. The franchise newcomer debuts as a further villain within the third installment of James Cameron’s epic Avatar saga, which has all the time starred Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver, and Stephen Lang.
Within the third film, Sam (Worthington) and Neytiri (Saldaña) are grieving their eldest son, whereas recurring villain Quaritch (Lang) allies with Varang, the chief of the Na’vi Ash Folks. This clan was devastated by a pure catastrophe, and Varang grew to become disillusioned with Eywa, the deity worshiped by a lot of the Na’vi peoples, and now leads with a way more hostile strategy.
Although they may have perished in Avatar: Hearth and Ash‘s climactic remaining battle, Quaritch’s destiny is ambiguous, whereas Varang does survive, leaving the door open for her to return in Avatar 4 and 5, which Cameron desires to make. In an interview with Gold Derby, Chaplin mentioned: “I might have fought for Varang to stay round even when that wasn’t the case. […] Fortunately, it was already within the script, and I hope to maintain enjoying her in Avatar 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 — nonetheless many we will do!“
Elements of Avatar 4 have been filmed, reportedly to account for a time leap and having the youthful actors full their scenes earlier than they aged out of the roles, however Chaplin declines to say whether or not she is in any of this footage. In the meantime, Chaplin believes “There’s an attention-grabbing evolution for the Ash Folks and what half they play within the higher arc of this Pandora epic.“
“I am excited to maintain exploring [Varang] … there are such a lot of cool potentialities shifting ahead,” says the star. Chaplin additionally mentioned how Varang’s worldview was modified on this installment; her ambitions have grown due to her partnership with Quaritch: “This movie is her coming of age story […] To start with, she’s in struggle or flight mode, and whenever you reside like that, you’ll be able to’t see past the factor that you are looking at.“
“However then to have her horizons blown open by Quaritch, she sees that she will tackle Eywa and the opposite Na’vi,” she says. Chaplin additionally addresses the deep ache that formed Varang, which additionally could also be additional explored within the subsequent Avatar motion pictures: “Varang carries such a heavy load of trauma, which is sweet as a result of she grows into her power by harnessing the facility of her weak point.“
In Avatar: Hearth and Ash and certain in any sequels, Varang has an essential thematic position to play, reflecting and differing from the principle characters. Chaplin additional says: “Worry is like gasoline to her, though she’d by no means admit it. In that means, she’s additionally like a warning for what occurs whenever you let hatred develop into your coping mechanism. What occurs whenever you let the fury take over?“
- Launch Date
-
December 19, 2025
- Runtime
-
197 Minutes
- Writers
-
Amanda Silver, Rick Jaffa, James Cameron, Josh Friedman, Shane Salerno
- Producers
-
Jon Landau, James Cameron, Brigitte Yorke, Jamie Landau, Maria Battle-Campbell