Avatar Announces Streaming Release Date on Disney+ Competitor

It was just announced that the original Avatar movie will soon be heading to an additional streaming platform.

Currently, both Avatar movies are available to watch on Disney+. As it stands, they seem to do reasonably well for Disney in terms of viewership, with Avatar: The Way of Water being one of the most-watched films on the service in early June.

Oddly enough, James Cameron’s sequel isn’t exclusive to Disney+—it’s also available to stream on the competing Max service. These unique circumstances are the product of a contract made before 20th Century Fox was purchased by the Mouse.

Original Avatar Is Coming to Max

Via a new announcement on X (formerly known as Twitter), James Cameron’s original Avatar is set to make its way to Max.

The project, which remains one of the highest-grossing films of all time, will land on Disney+’s competitor on Thursday, August 17.

Additionally, these other films will be added to the service’s streaming library within the month of August:

• The Age of Adaline
• Agent Cody Banks
• American Gangster
• Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
• The Departed
• Get Hard
• Miss Congeniality
• A Nightmare on Elm Street (1-5)
• Ocean’s Thirteen
• Spaceballs
• Twister
• White Men Can’t Jump

How Long Will the Unique Avatar Deal Last?

It’s certainly a unique situation for both Avatar films to now be on competing streaming services—especially since it’s one of Disney’s biggest franchises now. After all, it’s even gotten its own section at Walt Disney World. 

While it may be strange, it’s great for customers, who now have a choice between services if access to Avatar is a deciding factor.

But will the circumstances still carry over for Avatar 3 when it’s finally released on December 19, 2025? It’s unclear how long the streaming deal is in effect, so fans probably won’t know until well into 2026.

In the meantime, audiences can start theorizing what the highly anticipated third movie will look like. It’s already been revealed that it’ll have new biomes like desert and snow, the fire Na’vi will be introduced, and humans might be portrayed in a more favorable light than usual.

Avatar: The Way of Water is now available to stream on Disney+ and Max. Avatar is streaming now on Disney+, while it is set to land on Max on Thursday, August 17.