The final battle in Avatar 3 underwent a profound transformation after James Cameron revisited the film's narrative tapestry and wove in a grand callback to the inaugural Avatar. The director has attested that the return of Toruk Makto—a character absent from Avatar: The Way of Water—was introduced late in the production process, following a pivotal insight from Zoe Saldaña. This addition ultimately elevated the climax of Avatar: Fire and Ash to a more epic scale.
Cameron, who typically trusts his creative instincts without much hesitation, found himself re-evaluating an early cut of Fire and Ash. During this re-watch, he discerned that certain aspects of the storytelling felt "a bit off," particularly as the film neared its conclusion. The director highlighted the conspicuous absence of Toruk, the massive Leonopteryx that Jake Sully rode during the climax of the first Avatar, as a lingering concern. "Our Toruk is back [in Fire and Ash], right?" Cameron asked, acknowledging the longstanding fan inquiry about Jake's absence from the creature in subsequent films.
Toruk Makto does not appear in Avatar: The Way of Water, and Cameron initially planned to save the callback for a future sequel. However, this plan underwent a significant shift after Cameron revisited the Avatar 3 script and rewrote the story to incorporate Toruk Makto into Fire and Ash. This decision necessitated additional scenes and removed others to accommodate the revised arc.
The director later elaborated that the concept gained momentum after a character note from Saldaña. While filming, Zoe Saldaña perceived that Neytiri lacked autonomy and that Jake was making too many decisions in isolation. Cameron adjusted the dynamic to have Neytiri actively urging Jake to act on behalf of their people. This change reframed Jake's reluctant return to Toruk Makto as a conscious, shared choice rather than a surprise revelation (via Slash Film).
As a result, the Toruk Makto sequence imbued the final battle with dramatic weight and created a direct parallel to the first film's climax. Cameron proclaimed that the change "works beautifully," and the cast responded enthusiastically to the revised ending.
Avatar: Fire and Ash was released on December 19, 2025, offering audiences a grand conclusion to the Avatar saga, enriched by the reimagined final battle and its poignant parallels to the film's inaugural chapter.
