Warning: Minor spoilers for Avatar: Fire and Ash
With the release of Avatar: Fire and Ash, most people will likely have expected headlines to be focused on the massive budget, the incredible VFX, or debates about whether a fourth film in the franchise is likely to get made.
Many viewers will be shocked to instead be seeing headlines and comments on social media about how the film has the raciest scenes in the entire trilogy.
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The new Avatar film, again starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang and Sigourney Weaver, is set to break records with an absolutely eye-watering opening weekend, estimated to be between $340 and 380 million.
The third movie will continue the story of the Sully family, this time encountering a new fire-based Na’vi tribe who align themselves with Lang’s Quaritch.
One of the main takeaways for many watching however has been surprise at the intimate scenes between Quaritch and new character Varang, played by Oona Chaplin.
Vulture, in their review of the film, said that director James Cameron finally let his ‘freak flag fly’ for the film.
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Describing the romance between Quaritch and Varang, which culminates in a bizarre tail sex scene, they said in their review: “Their dance of martial desire is the farthest the director has ever gone with this sort of thing, so much that it begins to feel like we’re intruding on a private, queasy fantasy.”
YouTube filmmaker Patrick T said about the film on X: “AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH is angry, trippy, and the sexiest movie of the year.”
Another fan took to X to say: “Got to see Avatar Fire and Ash last night. While the movie was great overall it was wild to see the Colonel and the fire witch have one of the steamiest tail sex scenes of all time.”
Over on Reddit multiple fans noted their surprise, with one comment on the official thread reacting to the film criticising the scene.
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They said: “The whales going HAM on the boats was probably my favorite part. James is still one of a kind when it comes to the action sequences.
“The dialogue and weird sexual thrusts from some of the characters? I could’ve lived without that.”
The newest Avatar has been the most critically controversial of the series so far, clocking in at 68% on Rotten Tomatoes at the time of writing.
Brian Tallerico, reviewing the film for RogerEbert.com, gave the movie a 2.5 out of four-star review. He said: “From the unfulfilled promise of Varang & Spider to the sequences that feel like exact carbon copies of ones from The Way of Water, I can’t imagine anyone thinking this film is the best of the trilogy.”
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But Ben Travis, reviewing the film for Empire, said: “Anyone hoping for a seismic shift in the overall saga should recalibrate their expectations.
“Still, this is about the most spectacular spectacle you could ever ask for -- utterly transportive, technically masterful.”
Avatar: Fire and Ash is available to watch in cinemas now.
Topics: TV and Film, Film, Sex and Relationships
Michael Slavin