After a 13-year wait, the highly anticipated film Avatar: The Way of Water finally hit theaters in December 2022. The Way of Water is the sequel to 2009’s Avatar and serves as the second film in the franchise. Taking place nearly 15 years after the original movie, The Way of Water follows Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña), who are raising a family of three biological children and two adopted kids. After the return of Colonel Miles Quaritch, Jake and his family flee from the Omatikaya to live with the Metkayina, an ocean clan who teach the Sullys about the ways of the water.
Like Avatar, which became the highest-grossing film of all time, The Way of Water grossed well over $2 billion worldwide. James Cameron, who wrote and directed the sequel, has directed the first (Avatar), third (The Way of Water), and fourth (Titanic) highest-grossing films of all time. The sequel is now heading to streaming so fans can enjoy the beauty of Pandora in their homes.
Where to watch Avatar: The Way of Water
Avatar: The Way of Water will stream on Disney+ and Max.
After Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Studios, the Avatar franchise is now available on Disney+. After streaming the Way of Water, Disney+ subscribers can relive and stream the first Avatar on the same service. Plus, stay up to date on the latest Marvel and Star Wars projects on Disney+, such as The Mandalorian, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
Formerly known as HBO Max, the merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery led to the name change of Max, which became official on May 23, 2023. Popular Discovery programs are now available on Max, including Fixer Upper, Property Brothers, Diners, Drive–ins and Dives, and 90 Day Fiancé. HBO programming is still streaming on Max, so Succession, The Sopranos, The Wire, and The Last of Us aren’t going anywhere.
When is it streaming for subscribers?
Avatar: The Way of Water is now streaming for subscribers of Disney+ and Max.
How much does it cost?
To subscribe to Disney+, there are two paid options: Disney+ with ads costs $8 a month, while Disney without ads costs $11 a month. However, the Disney+ bundle may be more advantageous to customers because it includes three services for one monthly price.
- Hulu (with ads) and Disney+ (with ads) costs $10 a month
- Hulu (with ads), Disney+ (with ads), and ESPN+ costs $13 a month
- Hulu (ad-free), Disney+ (ad-free), and ESPN+ costs $20 a month
With Max, there are three paid tiers.
- Max with ads: Costs $10 a month or $100 a year. Subscribers can stream on two devices at once at Full HD 1080p. There are about four minutes of ads per hour.
- Max, Ad Free: Costs $16 a month or $150 a year. Stream on two devices at once with full HD 1080p. Subscribers can download up to 30 programs to watch on the go.
- Max, Ultimate Ad Free: Costs $20 a month or $200 a year. Watch on four devices at once with the ability to stream in 4K UHD via Dolby Atmos on select titles. Subscribers can download up to 100 programs to watch on the go.
Is it worth watching?
Absolutely! Avatar: The Way of Water is worth watching without question. Never bet against Cameron because he always delivers. The Avatar sequel is visually spectacular, which should not come as a surprise to anyone following Cameron’s movies. Despite the three-hour runtime, The Way of Water feels perfectly paced, and the ending leaves the audience wanting more.
Reprising their roles from the first film are CCH Pounder, Giovanni Ribisi, Dileep Rao, Joel David Moore, and Matt Gerald. New cast members include Kate Winslet, Cliff Curtis, Edie Falco, Brendan Cowell, Jermaine Clement, Jamie Flatters, Britain Dalton, Trinity Jo-Li Bliss, Jack Champion, and Bailey Bass. Sigourney Weaver returns to the cast, but she plays the role of Jake’s adopted daughter Kiri, instead of Dr. Grace Augustine, who died in the first film.
Avatar: The Way of Water is directed and produced by Cameron from a script written by Cameron, Rick Jaffa, and Amanda Silver from a story the three wrote with Josh Friedman and Shane Salerno. On Rotten Tomatoes, Avatar: The Way of Water registers 76% on the Tomatometer with a 92% audience score. On Metacritic, the film holds a 67 Metascore with a 7.2 user score.
