In Avatar, the rainforest world is located on the moon Pandora. James Cameron’s 2009 science-fiction film follows humans who travel to Pandora, a habitable moon orbiting the gas giant Polyphemus in the Alpha Centauri system.
Pandora is home to the Na’vi, a tall blue species whose culture and environment are central to the story. Human researchers use genetically engineered Na’vi-human bodies called avatars to interact with the moon’s inhabitants and ecosystem.
The film’s Pandora is fictional and distinct from Saturn’s real moon and asteroid 55 Pandora. Cameron chose a mythological name that suggests wonder, danger, and the release of powerful consequences, but the movie’s setting is not an adaptation of Hesiod’s ancient myth.
Avatar’s fictional moon became especially notable for its extensive digital world-building and visual effects. The film was released in December 2009 and became known for presenting Pandora as an interconnected ecological environment rather than merely a backdrop for action.