There is little doubt that Avatar appears to exist in a world of its own. However, there are several theories about Avatar: The Way of Water and interestingly, even filmmaker Colin Trevorrow has his own ideas about the sequel, suggesting that it might be connected to James Cameron's 1989 film The Abyss. Luckily for the Knives Out director, Cameron himself has addressed his theory.
Colin Trevorrow was one of the lucky few who got their questions answered by James Cameron for the latest issue of Empire. The Glass Onion director's query mentions how the bioluminescent alien entity in The Abyss resembles life on Pandora and he wonders if Avatar shares a universe with the other movie. Amazingly, Cameron has somehow confirmed it.
"Just the universe of my brain," Cameron stated. "And obviously I love bioluminescence. From early childhood on I’ve had a deep awe and fascination with all the wonders of nature, both above and below water. That’s certainly what drove the creation of Avatar."
"The Abyss had a different motivation," he continued. "It was my version of The Day The Earth Stood Still, a function of my Cold War angst, and a comment on how an alien super-intelligence might judge rather harshly the way we mistreat each other and our beautiful world."
Cameron added, "In Avatar, WE are the invaders from space, and the common theme with The Abyss is that we are judged harshly by a more evolved alien culture, in that case the Na’vi, who live in a harmony with nature in a way that we have forgotten."
We can't really blame Cameron for his love for bioluminescence and it does make sense why the aliens in his films all have a beautiful glow.
Avatar: The Way of Water premieres on December 16, 2022.
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