People know Vin Diesel for his performances as Groot in the MCU and Dominic Torretto in The Fast and Furious franchise. But did you know that there were rumors of him appearing in Avatar: The Way of Water? Ever since it was announced that Avatar will receive multiple sequels, a handful of big-name actors, like Michelle Yeoh, and yes, Vin Diesel, were rumored to appear in this science fiction film franchise.
Knowing how successful Diesel has become in Hollywood after his night club bouncer days, and how he’s starred in multiple film franchises, did he star in Avatar‘s latest installment? Or were they all just rumors to throw people off from knowing who made it into the film?
Is Vin Diesel in ‘Avatar: The Way of Water?’
Rumors of Diesel making his way to Pandora were sparked back in 2019 through Instagram, where he appeared next to James Cameron on the Avatar set. The video teased a possible role in the franchise with the caption “the journey continues.” Cameron also joked how Diesel may have to get his memory wiped like in Men in Black just so nothing is leaked. This video felt promising at the time since it looked like the two got along and that another huge name will be part of this film series.
Unfortunately, all the hype that was built back in 2019 was for nothing since it was confirmed that Diesel would no longer be part of the franchise. Avatar producer Jon Landau cleared the rumors back in January 2023, around a month after Avatar: The Way of Water was released, that the Instagram video in question was taken out of context and that Diesel was just a fan of the film and Cameron’s work.
“Vin was a fan. He came in, visited the set one day to see what we were doing and people took that out of context.”
So for the fans who were keen to see Diesel star in the Avatar films, that will sadly not be possible. But if you want to see him in a film that’s also about protecting your family, the 10th installment of Fast and Furious, Fast X, will be released on May 18, 2023.