The Avatar: Fire and Ash ending is a particularly action-packed one, so it's understandable if some of the finer details of what happens passed you by.
The film is the third in James Cameron's epic Avatar series, which kicked off way back in 2009. This one requires you to remember some plot points from the first movie, as well as what happened in The Way of Water, so you might need to brush up on your Pandora lore. In Fire and Ash, Jake Sully and his family go up against the fearsome fire Na'vi, the Ash People, while also dealing with their old foes Quaritch and the RDA.
Avatar: Fire and Ash ending explained *Spoilers*
The Avatar: Fire and Ash ending begins when Jake Sully is freed from RDA captivity with the help of Neytiri, Spider, and the scientist Dr. Ian Garvin. He returns to the Metkayina to rally Pandora's clans and prepare to fight back, after learning the RDA and Scoresby intend to hunt the Tulkun for Amrita, a special liquid fatally extracted from the whale-like creatures that has anti-ageing properties for humankind.
Payakan was exiled from the Tulkun earlier in the movie for his violent tendencies, but, with the help of Lo'ak, he's able to convince the Tulkun matriarchs that fighting back is the only way to survive. His only surviving family member has been brutally wounded and blinded by the RDA, too, which helps sway the other creatures.
Jake then rallies the clans for war, and he also returns to the great Toruk, his fiery orange bonded bird, to become Toruk Makto once more and fight for the Na'vi.
The clans lie in wait while Scoresby and the RDA arrive to kill the Tulkun. Scoresby is taken by surprise when the Tulkun fight back for the first time ever, sinking multiple boats. Meanwhile, the Na'vi take to the skies and fight the RDA.
But, when the Ash People arrive, the tide turns against Jake and his forces. Quaritch, who was grounded by General Ardmore for losing sight of his mission, also shows up to wage war – Jake still has Quaritch's human son, Spider.
When all hope seems lost, Kiri decides to go underwater and connect her queue. This could prove disastrous, however, as Kiri is epileptic, and connecting in this way causes her to have seizures. Spider goes with her and connects for the first time, too, using the queue he developed after Kiri saved his life by calling on her strange powers to allow him to breathe Pandora's atmosphere. Still, it's not enough, until the youngest Sully, Tuk, also joins them.
The trio make it all the way to Eywa herself, who turns and takes notice of them. It's unclear if she's going to send help, until a swarm of the squid-like creatures Lo'ak dealt with earlier in the film, the Tsyong, appear and go to town on the RDA. The humans drown or are eaten by the creatures. Payakan's family member takes Scoresby in her mouth and dives down into the ocean, presumably drowning him.
But, the fight isn't over yet. Varang takes Tuk captive, so the Sully family go after her. Jake and Lo'ak are on hand to help save the day, however, and then – in an Aliens callback – Sigourney Weaver's Kiri scares Varang away from Neytiri.
This leads to a confrontation between Jake and Quaritch, who fistfight each other in a giant anti-gravity well. Spider is also with them, and when he almost falls to his death, both men stop fighting to save him. Sully extends a hand to Quaritch and tries to get him onside, but Quaritch is spooked by Neytiri and the others arriving, so deliberately throws himself backwards. He's last seen falling towards the fires below, and it's unclear what his fate is – though we highly doubt he's dead.
Finally, Spider connects his queue and goes to see the dead at the Tree of Souls, including Dr. Grace Augustine and Neteyam – and Ronal, who sadly dies during the climactic action, though Neytiri helps her deliver her child first. Payakan is accepted back from exile, too. It's a happy ending for the Sullys, though we suspect Quaritch is still out there to cause more problems if Avatar 4 goes ahead…
What happens to Varang?
Varang, the fearsome leader of the Ash People, is last seen running away after Kiri scares her off (with a neat callback to Aliens). After that, we don't see her again, so it seems she fled the carnage of the final battle entirely. She'll most likely show up again in Avatar 4, if it goes ahead.
Does Quaritch die?
Quaritch's fate is left unknown. After it seems like Jake gets through to him and convinces him to give Pandora a chance, Neytiri and the rest of the Sully family arrive, which spooks Quaritch. Though he's being given a chance at redemption, Quaritch throws himself backwards and falls down towards the fire below. We last see him screaming as he falls, though seemingly not in fear. Whether he survives the plunge or not remains to be seen, but this wouldn't be the first time Quaritch defied death to return and cause trouble for Jake Sully.
What does Toruk Makto mean and why is Jake Sully called that?
Toruk Makto means 'Rider of the Last Shadow,' and it's a title belonging to Jake Sully after he successfully rode the Great Leonopteryx Toruk in the first film. Jake returns to ride the Toruk again in Avatar: Fire and Ash during the climactic action, and, though it gets injured, it climbs back up and carries on the fight.
Who are the Ash People and why do they love fire?
The Ash People are another type of Na'vi on Pandora, the Mangkwan Clan. Their home was destroyed by a volcanic eruption, and, as a consequence, they turned their backs on Eywa. They're also violent and vicious, attacking other Na'vi. They're introduced in an aerial battle sequence against the Wind Traders, which is how they first cross paths with the Sully family – and Quaritch.
Who are the Wind Traders?
The Wind Traders are the Tlalim Clan, and they are nomadic Na'vi who travel Pandora to trade. Jake wants to use them to send Spider back to live with the other humans on Pandora after Spider's mask breaks and he almost suffocates in the Pandoran atmosphere, but, after the kids get upset with this decision, the entire Sully family ends up travelling, too. The Wind Traders are brutally attacked by the Ash People on the journey.
How can Spider breathe on Pandora?
Spider's mask breaks in the night near the start of the film, which means he almost suffocates when the Sullys can't immediately find the back-up mask. Jake then decides to send him to the other humans on Pandora, but his kids are vehemently against the idea. But, when the Wind Traders are attacked, Spider's mask starts running low and the spare is left behind in the wreckage. When Spider appears to be dying, Kiri asks Eywa for help, and she connects to the ground and begins a strange ritual.
When Lo'ak stops the ritual, fearing for Kiri's life, Spider is revealed to be able to breathe the Pandoran atmosphere. It turns out that the ritual created a symbiotic relationship between some Pandoran flora and Spider, which means it can't be extracted without killing him. However, the RDA intend to experiment on him to figure out how humans could breathe on Pandora, which would spell doom for the planet.
Why did the RDA want to experiment on Spider?
A major issue standing between the RDA and total colonization of Pandora is that humans can't breathe the atmosphere. However, since a ritual performed by Kiri to stop Spider from suffocating without his mask fuses him to some Pandoran flora and allows him to breathe the atmosphere (and gives him a queue), the RDA want to experiment on him to see if they can recreate the phenomenon for all of humankind. That would be disastrous for Pandora and the Na'vi, so Jake considers killing Spider to save the planet. Ultimately, he can't go through with it.
Why does Jake Sully nearly kill Spider?
Jake takes Spider into the forest after escaping RDA captivity to sacrifice the youngster, believing him too dangerous to be left alive. If the RDA re-capture Spider and find a way to replicate the phenomenon that allows him to breathe Pandora's atmosphere, then it would be disastrous for the planet and the Na'vi, as nothing would then stop the RDA from completely colonizing the planet. But, Jake can't bring himself to kill Spider, even though Spider understands why it has to happen.
Why do the Tulkun decide to fight back?
Payakan is exiled from his clan for his violent ways, and he goes to find his own family instead. But, only one member of his family survives, and she has been brutally maimed by Scoresby's crew and blinded. Payakan and his family member return to the Tulkun matriarchs to tell them to fight back – the Tulkun are completely pacifist, which means Scoresby has been killing them for Amrita with impunity. The Tulkuns disappear to make their decision, and, the next time we see them, they're destroying the RDA fleet. The answer was yes, then…
Why is Jake Sully arrested? Why is he a traitor to humankind?
Quaritch takes Jake into custody as a consequence of the events of the first film. Cast your mind all the way back to 2009, and you'll remember that Jake was originally a human marine who turned against Quaritch and the RDA to fight for Pandora. Quaritch has held a grudge ever since, and clearly, so has the rest of humanity and planet Earth.
What is Neytiri's bow?
Neytiri's bow belonged to her father, Eytukan, who gave it to her before perishing when the Hometree was destroyed. It broke in The Way of Water, but the kids repair it, and Neytiri uses it once more.
What happens to Scoresby? What about the RDA?
Scoresby gets the shock of his life when the usually pacifist Tulkun fight back against his attempts to massacre them. He's knocked into the water and Payakan's family member takes him into her mouth and dives down deep with him, presumably to drown him in the depths.
As for the rest of the RDA, everyone is killed either in the aerial battle against the Na'vi on their Toruks, or drowned or eaten by the squid-like creatures, the Tsyong, Eywa summons in the battle. The RDA's forces are pretty much entirely destroyed.
Who do Kiri and Spider see in their vision? Is that Eywa?
Kiri and Spider connect their queues underwater to speak to Eywa, who is a divine being connected to Pandora's natural world. Eywa doesn't speak back to them, but she does turn to look at them, and soon after she sends a squad of squid-like creatures, the Tsyong, to massacre the RDA and help save the day.
How does Eywa help the Sullys? What are those squid creatures?
Eywa listens to Kiri and Spider and sends the Tsyong, which are squid-like creatures, to attack the RDA. The creatures viciously go after all the humans there, eating them and destroying the ships.
What are Kiri's powers? Who is Kiri's father?
It's revealed in the film that Kiri has no biological father, meaning she is a clone birthed by Dr. Grace Augustine's Na'vi. She has mysterious powers, however, and is able to save Spider by connecting him to Pandora's natural world. She's also able to speak directly with Ewya. The full extent of her powers remains to be seen, however.
Who are all the characters at the end of the film?
At the very end of the film, Kiri takes Spider to see all those who have died previously in the Avatar movies. We see the likes of Dr. Grace Augustine, Neteyam, and even Ronal, all gathered at the Home Tree.
Does Ronal die?
Sadly, Ronal dies during the last battle, but not before she gives birth to her baby. Neytiri helps her deliver the child, a baby girl, who is seen connecting underwater at the very end of the film. Ronal is injured through her shoulder and dies from the wound soon after giving birth.
Does Fire and Ash set up Avatar 4?
Kind of. At the moment, it's unclear if Avatar 4 will happen, with James Cameron indicating he'd be willing to walk away from the series if Fire and Ash doesn't make enough money. But, he also said he'd write a book to wrap up the one open plot thread – and that seems to be Quaritch, who jumps away from Jake Sully's attempt at conciliation and into some fires raging below. Varang also flees without being caught after Kiri scares her off. So, another Avatar movie will probably catch up with Quaritch or Varang, who will presumably still be working against the Sully family (though, Quaritch seems primed to switch sides eventually).
The RDA have pretty much been defeated, too, but presumably there are more forces who could take the fallen's place: and there's the issue of Spider being able to breathe Pandora's atmosphere, which has revealed to humanity that total colonization of Pandora could be possible. In short, things seem pretty wrapped up for now, but there are plenty of opportunities for a follow-up.
That's a wrap on Avatar: Fire and Ash. For more, check out our Avatar: The Way of Water ending explained, or see our guide to all the biggest movie release dates to get planning your theater trips.
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