Home / Arts and Entertainment / Avatar 2 Cast Dives Deep for Pandora-Inspired Underwater Scenes
Avatar 2 Cast Dives Deep for Pandora-Inspired Underwater Scenes
7 Nov
Summary
- Actors trained in tanks before filming real ocean dives in Hawaii
- Director James Cameron wanted to give cast "an experience as close to Pandoran as possible"
- Nighttime dives inspired scenes in the film, like Sigourney Weaver's character touching a ray
In November 2025, the highly anticipated Avatar sequel, The Way of Water, hit theaters to critical acclaim. Much of the film's praise has focused on the technical prowess of director James Cameron and his team, particularly when it comes to the movie's extensive underwater scenes set on the fictional planet of Pandora.
To ensure the actors were ready for these challenging aquatic sequences, Cameron and the production crew took extraordinary measures. The cast, including stars like Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, and Sigourney Weaver, first trained in tanks, learning to dive and hold their breath underwater. This preparation paid off, as the actors eventually gained the skills and comfort needed to traverse a real reef in Hawaii.
The Hawaii excursion proved to be a transformative experience for the cast. Not only did it help them "feel at one with nature," as Cameron described, but it also directly inspired certain scenes in the film. For instance, during a nighttime dive, Weaver's character was seen reaching out to touch a ray - a moment that was directly influenced by the actress' own underwater encounter.
With the cast fully immersed in the Pandoran world, both literally and figuratively, the end result is a visually stunning and emotionally resonant film that is sure to captivate audiences for years to come.
