Earlier this year, we learned that Avatar will be re-released in theaters on September 23. With remastered visuals and effects, the studio is giving fans the opportunity to relive James Cameron's 2009 3D blockbuster on the biggest screens possible, but what if you'd rather watch it at home?
Well, you'd best hope you have a Blu-ray copy sitting on your shelf!
Avatar has mysteriously vanished from Disney+ with no explanation. What's On Disney Plus (via SFFGazette.com) was the first to spot the change, and there's been quite a bit of backlash online.
Subscribers weren't notified in advance, and the change has taken effect across the entire world. The cynical explanation for this is that Avatar may have been taken down to ensure as many people head to theaters as possible to watch the movie again, thereby increasing its chances of box office success (it's already the highest-grossing movie of all time).
If so, that's a little shady, as it comes across like Disney not wanting to spend all that time and money hyping up Avatar's re-release, only for people to watch at home rather than pay for a ticket. Ultimately, that's their choice, as remastered visuals and sound don't mean as much to some as others.
However, there's another possible explanation here; it could be that Disney+ plans to upload the remastered and improved edition to the streaming service, ensuring people can watch the best possible version of Avatar. Though we can't see that happening until after the planned theatrical release.
This December's sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water, is set more than a decade after the events of the first film and it begins to tell the story of the Sully family (Jake, Neytiri, and their kids), the trouble that follows them, the lengths they go to keep each other safe, the battles they fight to stay alive, and the tragedies they endure.
Directed by Avatar helmer James Cameron and produced by Cameron and Jon Landau, Avatar: The Way of Water stars Zoe Saldana, Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Cliff Curtis, Joel David Moore, CCH Pounder, Edie Falco, Jemaine Clement, and Kate Winslet.
Avatar: The Way of Water arrives in theaters worldwide on December 16.