Avatar 2 gets a new title: New footage from James Cameron's film unveiled at CinemaCon

During Disney's slate presentation in Caesars Palace's Colosseum, CinemaCon delegates, donning their 3D glasses, gave a wildly enthusiastic welcome to their return to Pandora with a first look at the stunning teaser trailer for James Cameron's newly titled sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water.

While introducing the teaser trailer, which will be released exclusively in theatres next week, producer Jon Landau said that they need to make sure moviegoers have an experience they can't get anywhere else ahead of Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness' release. Landau also revealed that the original Avatar will be re-released in theatres on September 23 with restored vision and sound.

According to Landau, each of the four sequels will focus on the return of Jake Sully, played by Sam Worthington, and Na'vi Neytiri, played by Zoe Saldana, and their family, as well as the lengths they go to keep each other safe; each is a stand-alone film that, when combined, is an even greater connected epic saga. This year's release date for The Way of Water is December 16.

The teaser trailer focuses on Jake and Neytiri and includes stunning shots of Pandora's bright blue water, both above and below the surface; Toruk, the flying creatures introduced in the first film; and new whale-like creatures in a story set more than a decade after the events of the first film.

Sigourney Weaver plays Dr. Grace Augustine, and Colonel Miles Quaritch is played by Stephen Lang. Some big-name newcomers appear in the film, including Vin Diesel and Kate Winslet, who starred in Cameron's Titanic. 

Russell Carpenter, the Oscar-winning director of photography for Cameron's Titanic, is among the behind-the-scenes professionals. The visual effects for Avatar have returned to Weta FX in New Zealand, supervised by senior VFX supervisor and four-time Academy Award winner Joe Letteri.