Director James Cameron’s “Avatar” sequels will see the return of Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana. The two stars will reprise their roles as Jake Sully and Princess Neytiri respectively.

Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana

Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana

We can also expect the return of Stephen Lang as the ruthless Marine Colonel Quaritch in the “Avatar” universe. Speaking to Variety back in October last year, Cameron said:

“Steven was so memorable in the first film, we’re privileged to have him back,”

“I’m not going to say exactly how we’re bringing him back, but it’s a science fiction story, after all. His character will evolve into really unexpected places across the arc of our new three-film saga. I really look forward to working with such a gifted actor, who’s also become a good friend.”

The sequels will be filmed back to back in New Zealand, with a combined budget of an estimated $NZ500 million ($US415 million) on live action and visual effects.

Josh Friedman is hired to pen the script for the second instalment, Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver are onboard to write the third one, and Shane Salerno will tackle the scripting duties for the final entry. “Avatar 2” is set to be released in December 2016, with “Avatar 3” in December 2017, and “Avatar 4” planned for 2018.

Additional Source: deadline.com