E-Paper
Internet is confused after Zoe Saldaña calls her Avatar character Neyitri ‘racist’: ‘Did she misunderstand her choices?’
Zoe Saldaña called her character in the Avatar franchise, Neyitri, ‘racist’. Avatar Fire and Ash is directed by James Cameron and is running in theatres.
Actor Zoe Saldaña has commented on her character, Neyitri, in the Avatar franchise. The actor has played the character in all the instalments of the franchise, with the latest release- Fire and Ash, now running in theatres worldwide. In a new interview with Cinemablend, Zoe has called Neyitri ‘racist’, which has not been received well by fans of the film. Many took to social media to comment that the actor seems to have misunderstood the legitimate grief of her character.
What Zoe said about Neyitri
During the interview, Zoe said, "Let’s face it, Neytiri’s a racist. And she just… and she loses sight because of this blind fury that she has. She loses sight that the person that she loves the most and respects the most in her life is her husband, and he is human, he’s a sky-person and I think it takes a lot of courage for Jake to be honest with her and to force her — even knowing that she is broken, that he knows that she needs to face this, because he sees in the direction that she’s heading and I think it’s much more familiar to him where Neytiri’s heading than for Neytiri herself.”
How the internet reacted
Soon, Zoe's comments surfaced on social media where many users reacted to it. One said, 'You can't be a racist towards your oppressors, not even in a sci-fi setting. Hope this helps!" Another said, “How can u misunderstand a character you’ve been playing for the last 20 years this badly??” A second user added, “She’s a what?! She ain’t a racist she is against colonialism.”
A comment read, “Brother what? Neytiri believes in balance and Eywa’s will and all of that is disrupted by the Sky people. She’s not racist, her faith, belonging, and family are being destroyed by colonizers. She found love with Jake because he was willing to learn and accept her for that.”
Another user argued, “Racist???? her hate has NOTHING to do with race….? it’s because she’s sick and tired of her home being attacked and colonised.” “I have never seen someone misunderstand their own character as badly as this,” said a user.
James Cameron’s Avatar: Fire and Ash follows 2009’s Avatar and picks up directly after 2022’s Avatar: The Way of Water. The previous installment concluded with Marine-turned-Na’vi leader Jake Sully and Na’vi warrior Neytiri losing their eldest son, Neteyam. He was killed while attempting to save his younger siblings from the Resources Development Administration (RDA).
