Newcomers include Oona Chaplin and David Thewlis.

Avatar: Fire and Ash cast: See the returning favorites (and new Na’vi) bringing the heat to Pandora

Newcomers include Oona Chaplin and David Thewlis.

By Allison DeGrushe

Allison DeGrushe

Allison DeGrushe is a timely SEO writer at **. She has been working at * *since 2025. Her work has previously appeared on Distractify.

EW's editorial guidelines

on December 16, 2025 4:26 p.m. ET

Leave a Comment

Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña) and Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) in 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'. Credit:

20th Century Studios

- *Avatar: Fire & Ash *hits theaters on Friday, Dec. 19.

- Joining the *Avatar *universe are *Games of Thrones* alum Oona Chaplin and *Harry Potter* star David Thewlis.**

- Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver, and Stephen Lang are among the returning cast members.**

*Avatar: Fire and Ash* continues James Cameron's epic eco-saga, serving as a flame-scorched follow-up to 2022's *Avatar: The Way of Water*.

*Fire and Ash* finds the threat from the human RDA colonizers looming over Pandora as Jake (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña) grieve the loss of their eldest son. But they'll also have to reckon with a new adversary in Varang (Oona Chaplin), the leader of the Ash People, a volcanic clan of Na'vi.

"[You] think of fire as hatred, anger, violence, that sort of thing, and ash is the aftermath. So what's the aftermath? Grief, loss, right?" Cameron previously told **. "And then what does that cause in the future? More violence, more anger, more hatred. It's a vicious cycle."

This cycle, in particular, brings fresh faces into the mix as the audience is exposed to new corners of Pandora. Below, we break down who's coming back and who's joining the fight in *Avatar: Fire and Ash*.

Sam Worthington as Jake Sully

Sam Worthington at the premiere of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'; Jake Sully in 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'.

Rodin Eckenroth/Getty; 20th Century Studios

Before his breakout in *Avatar*, Sam Worthington appeared in films like *Hart's War* (2002), *Somersault *(2004), and *Terminator Salvation* (2009), the latter an entry in another Cameron franchise.

After joining the *Avatar *universe, Worthington helped lead *Clash of the Titans* (2010) and its 2012 sequel, then collaborated with filmmakers like David Ayer (*Sabotage*), Mel Gibson (*Hacksaw Ridge*), and Kevin Coster (*Horizon: An American Saga*). He also played leading roles on a pair of series: Discovery's *Manhunt* (2017) and FX's *Under the Banner of Heaven* (2022).

In *Avatar: Fire and Ash*, Worthington returns as Jake Sully, the human-turned-Na'vi leader who finds love with Neytiri. The actor previously told EW that Neteyam's death awakens a more "primal" side of Jake, who's been trying to avoid battle at all costs.

"Jake's been living with the Na'vi for 10 years now," he said. "The idea is to lean into that primal aspect a bit more, and that's just something that I'm going to keep developing over the saga."

Zoe Saldaña as Neytiri

Zoe Saldana at the premiere of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'; Neytiri in 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'.

Michael Buckner/Getty; 20th Century Studios

Zoe Saldaña is a sci-fi regular, having found fame playing Gamora in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Uhura in the *Star Trek *franchise, and, of course, Neytiri in *Avatar*.

But Saldaña contains multitudes. In 2024, she earned acclaim for her performance in Netflix's musical crime drama *Emilia Pérez,* taking home the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. On the small screen, she stars on and executive produces the Taylor Sheridan spy series *Lioness *(2023–present).

Here, Saldaña reprises her role as Na'vi warrior Neytiri, Jake's wife and the mother of their children: Neteyam, Lo'ak, Kiri, and Tuk.

The actress recently told Collider that Neytiri's grief over her son's death has turned her into a "full-blown racist" against the sky people, a.k.a. the humans.

"Neytiri's a full-blown racist in this movie," she told the outlet. "This is a woman who has experienced an extreme amount of loss at the hands of a race, of a species that she [doesn't recognize] as her own, and that she doesn't understand. She doesn't want to accept them, and yet she falls in love with one of them and has a family with them."

She added, "But what Neytiri must do is she must grow. She has to, because her children depend on it."

Sigourney Weaver as Kiri

Sigourney Weaver at the premiere of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'; Kiri in 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'.

Jesse Grant/Getty; 20th Century Studios

Long before *Avatar*, three-time Oscar nominee Sigourney Weaver was already a sci-fi icon thanks to her role as Ellen Ripley in *Alien *franchise (1986–1997).

Fans might also know Weaver from the *Ghostbusters *franchise (1984–2021), *Galaxy Quest* (1999), *The Cabin in the Woods* (2011), and *The Gorge* (2025). Next, she'll join the *Star Wars* universe in *The Mandalorian and Grogu*.

Weaver originally joined *Avatar *as Dr. Grace Augustine, but now plays Kiri, the teen daughter of Grace's Na'vi avatar. She was adopted by Jake and Neytiri.

Reflecting on the role, Weaver recently said that playing Kiri forced her to revisit her own adolescence. "I think for me, the biggest surprise was that that time in my life was a really unhappy time and I was away from home," she said. "And I really had to learn what Kiri learns, which is kind of having the courage to make your way through."

Stephen Lang as Colonel Miles Quaritch

Stephen Lang at the premiere of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'; Quaritch in 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'.

Ben Montgomery/WireImage; 20th Century Studios

Tony nominee Stephen Lang was a seasoned performer by the time he began playing Colonel Miles Quaritch in the *Avatar *films. Highlights from the imposing performer's long resume include *Manhunter *(1986), *Tombstone *(1993), and the *Don't Breathe *films (2016–2021).

In *Avatar: Fire and Ash, *Lang reprises his role as Quaritch, the former RDA chief, now resurrected as a Na'vi and driven by vengeance against Jake and his family.

"I'm the advocate for this character," Lang recently told* The Wrap*. "But he's got his own story to tell. The stakes are very, very high for him as well. … I find it incredibly gratifying that people find the story worthwhile and interesting, and that … people, they can despise him, but they can also respect him right away."

Oona Chaplin as Varang

Oona Chaplin at the premiere of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'; Varang in 'Avatar: Fire and Ash';.

Karwai Tang/WireImage; 20th Century Studios

Oona Chaplin is best known for her turn as *Game of Thrones*' Talisa Stark, whose gory fate at season 3's Red Wedding still has fans talking. Since then, she's stayed busy on TV with roles on *The Crimson Field *(2014), *Black Mirror *(2014), *Taboo *(2017), and *The Comey Rule *(2020).

Now, Chaplin makes her *Avatar *debut in *Fire and Ash* as Varang, the fiery new villain and leader of the Mangkwan clan, a.k.a. the Ash People, a tribe of Na'vi who live among volcanoes. Her anger stems from a catastrophic event that annihilated the clan's homeland.

In a recent interview with EW, Chaplin described how Varang was activated by that natural disaster.

"A lot of people died horribly, and then people were starving and there was nothing," Chaplin said. "It killed all of life in her zone. Her whole world was destroyed. Instead of becoming defeated by it, she went towards the fire. She went towards the thing that had destroyed everything that she loved, and she became a devotee of this power, this force of fire."

David Thewlis as Peylak

David Thewlis at the premiere of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'; Peylak in 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'.

Pascal Le Segretain/Getty; 20th Century Studios

David Thewlis is widely recognized for playing werewolf Remus Lupin in the *Harry Potter *films (2004–2011), but his career stretches way beyond the wizarding world.

He rose to fame with incendiary turns in the Mike Leigh films *Life Is Sweet* (1990) and *Naked* (1993), and went on to steal scenes in movies like *The Big Lebowski *(1998), *The Theory of Everything *(2014), and *I'm Thinking of Ending Things *(2020).

You may also recognize him from season 3 of FX's *Fargo* (2017), for which he was nominated for an Emmy and a Golden Globe. Most recently, he's taken on leading roles on series like *The Artful Dodger *(2023–present) and *Sherlock & Daughter *(2025).

Thewlis plays Peylak in *Avatar: Fire and Ash*, the leader of the Wind Traders, a nomadic, sky-bound clan that travels across Pandora in a flying caravan.

Cameron hinted to *Empire* that Peylak and the Wind Traders will become increasingly important as the franchise evolves. "They're going to be throughout the cycle of 3, 4 and 5," he said. "They're still 100% Na'vi but they're not place-specific, which is different because most indigenous people are very rooted in their sense of place."

As for Peylak himself, the director suggested he's playing "a long game," with plans that stretch well beyond *Fire And Ash*.**

Britain Dalton as Lo’ak

Britain Dalton at the premiere of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'; Lo'ak in 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'.

Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic; 20th Century Studios

Before becoming part of the *Avatar *franchise, Britain Dalton starred in the first season of the Amazon Prime legal series *Goliath* (2016). He later appeared in the films *Ready Player One* (2018) and *Dark Harvest *(2023).

Here, Dalton reprises his role as Lo'ak, Jake and Neytiri's second and only surviving son.

Trinity Bliss as Tuk

Trinity Bliss at the premiere of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'; Tuk in 'Avatar: The Way of Water'.

Pascal Le Segretain/Getty; 20th Century Studios

Trinity Bliss made her film debut in *Avatar: The Way of Water, *and recently appeared in Mike Flanagan's *The Life of Chuck *(2024)*. *You may also recognize her voice from Netflix's *Princess Power *(2023–2024).

Bliss is also a singer and released her first studio album, *Confessions of a Preteen*, in 2023.

She returns to Pandora as Tuk, the youngest child of Jake and Neytiri.

Jack Champion as Spider

Jack Champion at the premiere of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'; Spider in 'Avatar: The Way of Water'.

Stefania D'Alessandro/Getty; 20th Century Studios

Like many of his younger costars, Jack Champion burst onto the scene in *Avatar: The Way of Water*. Since then, he's appeared in numerous films, including *Scream VI* (2023), *Freaky Tales *(2024), and *Everything's Going to Be Great *(2025).

Next, he'll star in the Netflix comedy *Don't Say Good Luck* alongside Sunny Sandler, Adam Sandler's youngest daughter.

Champion returns in *Avatar: Fire and Ash*, stepping back into the role of Miles "Spider" Socorro, Quaritch's teen son who was born on Pandora and later taken in by Jake and Neytiri.

Cliff Curtis as Tonowari

Cliff Curtis at the premiere of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'; Tonowari in 'Avatar: The Way of Water'.

Kevin Winter/WireImage; 20th Century Studios

Cliff Curtis is among New Zealand's most versatile actors, building a filmography that spans Hollywood blockbusters, indie darlings, and acclaimed TV shows.

Curtis has appeared in dozens of projects, most notably *Training Day *(2001), *Fear the Walking Dead *(2015–2017), *The Meg *(2018), and *Invincible *(2023–present).

Curtis returns as Tonowari, the leader of the Metkayina clan and Ronal's husband.

Kate Winslet as Ronal

Kate Winslet at a screening of Netflix's 'Goodbye June'; Ronal in 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'.

John Nacion/FilmMagic; 20th Century Studios

Kate Winslet's career needs little introduction. The actress has six Academy Award nominations to her name, including one for Cameron's *Titanic *(1997). She won the Oscar for Best Actress for *The Reader *(2008), and is also a two-time Emmy winner for *Mildred Pierce *(2011)* *and *Mare of Easttown* (2021).

In 2025, Winslet made her directorial debut with *Goodbye June*, a holiday drama written by her son, Joe Anders.

Winslet returns for *Avatar: Fire and Ash *as Ronal, the spiritual heart of the Metkayina clan and Tonowari's wife.

Bailey Bass as Tsireya

Bailey Bass at the premiere of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'; Tsireya in 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'.

Pierre Suu/WireImage; 20th Century Studios

Bailey Bass first drew attention as Claudia in season 1 of *Interview with the Vampire* (2022). That same year, she starred in the Lifetime movie *A Gift of Murder* as a high school student who clashes with the mean girl at her new school.

Outside of acting, Bass studies psychology at Columbia University.

Here, she reprises her role as Tsireya, a member of the Metkayina clan and Tonowari and Ronal's daughter. She is also Lo'ak's love interest.

Where can I watch Avatar: Fire and Ash?**

*Avatar: Fire and Ash *hits theaters on Friday, Dec. 19.

***Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.***

- Movie Reviews & Recommendations

- Sci-Fi & Fantasy Movies

Original Article on Source

Source: “EW Sci-Fi”