Several key characters from the previous Avatar films are confirmed to return in Avatar 3, continuing the story of Pandora and its inhabitants.
Jake Sully (played by Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña) will reprise their roles as the central Na’vi protagonists. Their family saga remains the core of the narrative, with their adopted daughter Kiri (Sigourney Weaver) also returning. Kiri is the Na’vi avatar daughter of Dr. Grace Augustine, who was a major character in the first film but now appears as Kiri in the sequels[3].
Stephen Lang returns as Colonel Miles Quaritch, the main antagonist who was killed in the first film but resurrected as a recombinant avatar. He continues his vendetta against Jake and his family, including his son Miles “Spider” Socorro[3]. Giovanni Ribisi’s character Parker Selfridge, a secondary human villain from the original movie, will also return with a larger role after a brief cameo in Avatar: The Way of Water[1].
Laz Alonso, who played the Na’vi warrior Tsu’tey in the original film, is confirmed to return for motion-capture work in Avatar 3. Although Tsu’tey died in the first movie, his return or the continuation of his legacy through family members is hinted at, possibly due to the powerful spiritual elements of Pandora and the long runtime of the new film[2].
Other returning characters include Dr. Max Patel (Dileep Rao), who was confirmed to appear again, and new antagonists such as the Ash People, a new Na’vi tribe introduced in Avatar 3. David Thewlis returns as Peylak, the leader of the Wind Traders, a Na’vi clan featured in this and future sequels[3][4].
In summary, Avatar 3 brings back the main Sully family, key human antagonists like Quaritch and Selfridge, and some important Na’vi characters including Tsu’tey, while also introducing new tribes and characters to expand the world of Pandora.
Sources
https://www.imdb.com/news/ni64008482/
https://thedirect.com/article/avatar-fire-ash-surprise-return-character-death
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avatar:_Fire_and_Ash
https://www.threeifbyspace.net/2025/12/meet-new-characters-from-avatar-fire-ash/
