James Cameron talks Pandora, Ash clan, and Wind Traders in Avatar 3

By Dan Girolamo Published February 7, 2025

It’s 2025, which means one thing: Avatar 3 awaits.

Later this year, James Cameron will invite audiences to Pandora for the third time in Avatar: Fire and Ash. After exploring the ocean-dwelling Metkayina clan in The Way of Water, Cameron introduces two groups of Na’vi in Avatar 3: Mangkwan and Tlalim.

The Mangkwan are better known as the Ash People, led by their fearless leader Varang, played by Oona Chaplin. Cameron explained to Empire Magazine that the Ash People have experienced incredible hardship and will become an adversarial threat to Jake Sully and his people.

“Varang is the leader of a people who have gone through an incredible hardship. She’s hardened by that,” Cameron said. “One thing we wanted to do in this film is not black-and-white simplistic. We’re trying to evolve beyond the ‘all humans are bad, all Na’vi are good’ paradigm.'”

EXCLUSIVE 🪼

Meet Peylak, chieftain of the Wind Traders in #Avatar: Fire And Ash, played by David Thewlis.

“He’s absolutely stunning in the movie,” costume designer Deborah L. Scott tells Empire.

READ MORE: https://t.co/SHgxBMqYKX pic.twitter.com/12SSB69hdh

— Empire (@empiremagazine) February 7, 2025

On the other hand, the Tlalim Clan is much friendlier than the Ash People. The Tlalim, or Wind Traders, float on enormous creatures high above the water in the clouds. One of the key Wind Traders is Peylak, played by David Thewlis.

“They’re nomadic traders, equivalent to the camel caravans of the Spice Road back in the Middle Ages,” Cameron explained when asked about the Tlalim. “And you know, they’re just fun. Like all Na’vi, they live in a symbiosis with their creatures.”

The Na’vi can’t forget about the RDA, who are back with a vengeance in Avatar 3. Jake Sully and Co. gained the advantage in The Way of Water, something the RDA has not forgotten. Production designer Ben Procter said Fire and Ash will include a battle sequence that makes The Way of Water’s conflict look like “nothing but a skirmish.”

“At the end of Avatar 3, what we’re going to see is something of a scale, in terms of conflict, that we have not seen before,” Procter told Empire.

Avatar: Fire and Ash opens in theaters on December 19, 2025.