“A Full-Blown Racist”: Zoe Saldaña Teases Neytiri’s Dark Transformation In Avatar: Fire & Ash

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Zoe Saldaña hints that her character, Neytiri, will be dealing with intense anger and prejudice in the upcoming film, Avatar: Fire and Ash. This stems from the death of her and Jake Sully’s son, Neteyam (played by Jamie Flatters), at the end of Avatar: The Way of Water, and she’s still grieving his loss as the story continues.

In an interview with MovieWeb, Zoe Saldaña explained how her character, Neytiri, is dealing with grief after the death of her son, Neteyam. This grief has turned into intense hatred for Spider, a human character, because he reminds her of the humans who killed Neteyam. Saldaña says Neytiri’s rage is so strong that Jake Sully barely recognizes her anymore. You can read Saldaña’s full comments below.

Spider represents everything Neytiri has lost, and she’s consumed by anger and resentment. In ‘Fire and Ash,’ she acts with prejudice to a degree that Jake barely recognizes her – she’s become a stranger to herself. She’s turned away from the Na’vi principle of accepting all life, as symbolized by Eywa’s teaching to nurture any child, regardless of origin. But instead of love, Spider only brings up painful memories and intensifies her negative feelings.

Saldaña praised how the story of Avatar: Fire and Ash developed Neytiri’s character, particularly how her anger towards humans impacted her family. She also complimented the performance of the actor playing Champion, suggesting his character is more connected to the values of Eywa than Neytiri is in this new installment.

I really appreciated Jim’s development of Neytiri’s character. Her anger towards the humans is intense, but the story cleverly explores how she needs to address conflict within her own family before she can truly overcome the larger battle. It was a really moving and fascinating aspect of the film. Jack Champion’s portrayal of Spider was also fantastic. He captured Spider’s mix of bravery, recklessness, and genuine curiosity, all influenced by his upbringing with the Sully family. He’s a compelling character because despite his boldness, he remains humble, empathetic, and connected to the spiritual world of Eywa and his community. It was truly beautiful to watch.

The recent feedback expands on what we’ve seen in the Fire & Ash trailers, particularly Jake urging Neytiri to move past her anger, saying, “You cannot live like this, baby, in hate.” Zoe Saldaña has described Neytiri as “a full-blown racist,” suggesting her hatred is even more intense and destructive than initially shown.

The next Avatar movie will focus on the ongoing war with humans, as well as the challenges posed by Varang and the Ash People. However, Zoe Saldaña has highlighted that the story will also deeply explore the internal struggles of the Sully family, particularly Spider’s role within it.

Because Miles Quaritch is Spider’s father, some fans have wondered if he’s a bad influence. However, Zoe Saldaña suggests it’s actually Neytiri who has changed for the worse. Despite Neytiri’s angry reactions towards him, Spider still appears to be a compassionate person.

Director James Cameron has called Fire and Ash the ending of a long story, leading many to believe we might see less of Jake and Neytiri in future Avatar films. The next movies seem to be focusing on their children – Spider, Lo’ak, Kiri, and others – and this could make Neytiri’s story, especially her connection with Spider, even more impactful.

Only three years have passed between Avatar: The Way of Water and Avatar: Fire and Ash, much less than the thirteen years fans waited between the first and second Avatar films. Even with this shorter gap, excitement has been high to see how the story of Neytiri and the Avatar world continues, and those questions will finally be answered when the new movie hits theaters on December 19th.

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2025-12-07 20:19