James Cameron, who was previously vocal about the Avatar franchise expanding only if it got enough business to justify its stunning cost.
So, after Avatar: Fire and Ash has surpassed a billion dollars at the box office, the director of the film series has said the follow-up, Avatar 4, is now a certainty.
In a chat with Screen Rant at the Saturn Awards, he said the fourth instalment is on the cards, adding that he's taking "audience feedback" into consideration when deciding where to take the franchise.
His previous remarks about the industry's condition sparked concerns that his dream of finishing the Avatar universe would never be realized.
"Here's the thing: the movie industry is depressed right now. Avatar 3 cost a lot of money", he told TVBS News. "We have to do well in order to continue. We have to do well, and we need to figure out how to make Avatar movies more inexpensively in order to continue."
Though it is worth noting that Avatar: Fire and Ash earned $870 million less than The Way of Water.
Meanwhile, two more Avatar installments, set to arrive in 2029 and 2031, are in store, as Disney had committed to, but there is no contractual obligation to bind the studio to fulfil them.