Avatar: Fire and Ash Launches with the Lowest Rotten Tomatoes Rating in the James Cameron Sci-Fi Series

Reviews are rolling in for Avatar: Fire and Ash, the latest chapter in James Cameron’s iconic sci-fi saga, and it currently holds the lowest Rotten Tomatoes score in the series.

As of now, Fire and Ash sits at 68% based on 88 reviews, though this number is likely to change as more opinions come in. For comparison, Avatar: The Way of Water has a score of 76%, while the original Avatar boasts an 81%.

Our review of Avatar: Fire and Ash gives it four stars, stating: “The most action-packed Avatar yet still manages to impress, with Oona Chaplin’s Varang bringing the heat. However, a frustrating lack of resolution and some repetitive storytelling choices make it feel more like The Way of Water part 2.”

The story picks up after the tragic death of Jake Sully and Neytiri’s son, Neteyam, at the end of The Way of Water, introducing a formidable new antagonist in Varang, the leader of the fierce Ash People, also known as the fire clan Mangkwan.

Fire and Ash is projected to have a strong opening weekend, though it may not reach the heights of The Way of Water. Cameron has hinted that he might step away from the franchise if the third installment doesn’t perform well financially.

“Absolutely,” Cameron remarked previously. “I’ve been in Avatar land for 20 years. Actually, 30 years, because I wrote it in ’95, but I wasn’t working continuously on it for those first 10 years. There was a brief flurry of interest in ’95, and then everybody said, ‘You’re out of your mind,’ and I shelved it for 10 years, and then we got serious in 2005. Yeah, absolutely. Sure, if this is where it ends, cool.”

Avatar: Fire and Ash hits theaters on December 19.