In 2009, director James Cameron introduced us to the world of Avatar.
The film, which was praised for its groundbreaking use of visual effects, and tops IMDB's Box Office Mojo list of the highest-grossing films of all time (unless you adjust for inflation, in which case Gone With The Wind tops that list, with Avatar coming in 15th).
Now Cameron is back with the film's sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water, the second of a planned five films set in the Avatar universe.
Here's what you need to know.
When does Avatar: The Way Of Water come out?
Avatar: The Way of Water will enjoy a full Australian theatrical release on Thursday, December 15.
It will be available in either 3D or the regular two dimensions.
What is Avatar: The Way of Water's run time?
Bring lots of snacks because this sequel tops out at more than three hours.
With the first film coming in at a long but not unreasonable two hours, Cameron has had to defend the sequel's luxurious run time, telling Empire Magazine: "I don't want anybody whining about length when they sit and binge-watch [television] for eight hours."
It's OK though, the director also gave audiences permission to use the bathroom during the film.
Remind me, what happened in the first Avatar?
OK, so, the year is 2154 and Earth has been depleted of natural resources. In a classic human move, Earth's leaders are mining a nearby moon named Pandora for a valuable mineral unfortunately named unobtanium.
Pandora's native people are the towering blue Na'vi, and Earthlings are using Na'vi-human hybrid bodies called avatars to survive in and explore the world.
Paraplegic marine Jake Sully enters Pandora as a bodyguard but is dragged into a battle between good and evil when he meets and falls in love with Na'vi Neytiri.
What follows is an epic journey as Jake, Neytiri and other canonically good characters fight to save Pandora's delicate ecosystem.
They do (kind of) and Jake decides to stay with Neytiri and live on Pandora as a Na'vi
OK cool, so what is Avatar: The Way of Water about?
Details about the exact plot of Avatar 2 are hard to come by thanks to a strict review embargo that's in place until the film hits cinemas.
What we do know is that the Avatar world follows a roughly real-world timeline, with events in The Way Of Water taking place "more than a decade" after those in the first film.
According to 20th Century Studios, the film "begins to tell the story of the Sully family (Jake, Neytiri, and their kids), the trouble that follows them, the lengths they go to keep each other safe, the battles they fight to stay alive, and the tragedies they endure".
The trailer also gives audiences precious little to go on besides the fact most of the action seen takes place in or under water, with Cameron hinting at revolutionary visual effects to realistically mimic the environment.
The Way of Water is the second in a planned five films so don't expect any kind of finite ending in the sequel.
How much did Avatar: The Way of Water Cost?
Cameron is being cagey about exactly how much the bombastic sequel cost, commenting only that it was "really f**king expensive" in an interview with GQ.
"You have to be the third or fourth-highest-grossing film in history. That's your threshold. That's your break-even [point]," the director said.
The top five highest-grossing films of all time have all brought in over $US2 billion ($2.95 billion).
What are critics saying about Avatar: The Way of Water so far?
As mentioned, we won't be getting any full reviews until the embargo expires, but what we do have are many, many bite-sized tweets from critics who have already seen the film.
Many critics have lavished compliments on the sequel, with Indiewire film critic David Ehrlich describing it as "light years better than the first" and The Atlantic's David Sims praising its world building.
Other critics have been less overjoyed. Empire's Amon Warmann said he "liked it, didn't love it" and he criticised what he said was its uneven narrative.
The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw was less measured, declaring the film was "without a single interesting visual image".
