Patron saint of mo-cap Andy Serkis swings by ‘Avatar 2’ premiere to drop details on his next project

Avatar: The Way of Water just had its world premiere yesterday, and it sounds like James Cameron pulled off the very intentional feat of capturing the world’s collective awe once again. Given the 13 years that have passed since its predecessor’s release, it’s no surprise that the visuals on Cameron’s sci-fi spectacle are a step up from last time. With some reviews even suggesting that seeing the film in 3D (which we all know by now is a stupid gimmick) is a necessity, Cameron may have truly taken things to the next level.

The Way of Water, of course, largely relied on motion capture performances from much of its cast, including Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, and Kate Winslet. And where there’s motion capture, there’s Andy Serkis; the actor may have had no involvement with Cameron’s sequel, but he was nonetheless happy to make a visit to the film’s premiere, where he was spotted by Deadline and quizzed on what comes next.

Serkis has been hard at working helming a brand new adaptation of Animal Farm, based on George Orwell’s famous 1945 novella of the same name, which Serkis revealed is on track for a 2023 release date.

The film will be animated, and is a joint project between Cinesite, Aniventure, and Serkis’ production company The Imaginarium, with a screenplay from Nicholas Stoller (Bros, Zoolander 2, Muppets Most Wanted). Jonathan Cavendish, who co-owns The Imaginarium with Serkis, will produce alongside Adam Nagle, Dave Rosenbaum, and Serkis himself.

Avatar: The Way of Water will release in theaters on Dec. 16.