News culture Avatar 2: One of science fiction’s most badass villains makes a remarkable comeback in The Way of the Water
Published on 09/12/2022 at 15:54
For a hero to be born and flourish on the big screen, he needs a guarantor, and Jake Sully has found an adversary to his measure in the person of Colonel Miles Quaritch. This soldier embodied with intensity by actor Stephen Lang is back, but transformed in Avatar: The Way of the Water. The editorial staff of JV was able to speak with one of the most determined villains of the 7th Art.
Summary
Colonel Miles Quaritch reportingA 100% virtual role
Colonel Miles Quaritch au rapport
The end of Avatar directed by James Cameron left no doubt as to the fate of Colonel Miles Quaritch… that is to say none. The Colonel of the RDA forces (for Resources Development Administration) was indeed dead after serving as a target for Neytiri of the Omaticaya clan. However, it is to everyone’s surprise that Stephen Lang, the actor who plays the soldier, is credited in the credits of Avatar: The Way of the Water. The latter is back, more determined than ever to take his revenge on Jake Sully and his family.
Something tragic happens to your character at the end of Avatar. How did you welcome your return to La Voie de l’eau?
I’m glad you called my death tragic because to some people it’s more like, “Cool. He’s dead.” I was amazed to learn that Quaritch, although dead, would be revived and that I would have the opportunity to continue to deepen and expand the role. – Stephen Lang (Colonel Miles Quaritch – Avatar: The Waterway)
A 100% virtual role
In Avatar first of the name, Stephen Lang embodied a 100% human character. The actor made of flesh and bone was therefore present 100% of his time on the screen. With The Way of the Water, the latter is just as much, but trades his humanity for an avatar. The actor thus brings Colonel Miles Quaritch back to life thanks to the performance capture and the technical prowess of James Cameron’s artistic teams.
Unlike the first film, you play 100% an avatar in The Way of the Water. How did you approach this challenge?
This isn’t the first time I’ve played a virtual character. I was in a movie called Mortal Engines several years ago with Peter Jackson, and I also played Shrek. So I’ve done it before, but it was very different on Avatar: The Way of the Water. I understand this technology. It’s hard, but I like working with performance capture. Considering the way the character has been pieced together, there are still qualities that totally come from Quaritch. His aggressiveness, his ability to lead, his self-confidence… everything is intact, but he is also transformed by the fact that he has Na’vi DNA in his veins. It creates differences. Then he was defeated. This defeat changed him. My approach to the character had to integrate everything I knew about Quaritch and what we didn’t know yet, the most mysterious things like for example this new relationship with the environment of Pandora and the other characters including Spider, the young boy. – Stephen Lang (Colonel Miles Quaritch – Avatar: The Waterway)
Avatar: The Way of the Water will be released in theaters on December 14, 2022.
About Avatar: The Waterway
