In which California city did principal photography begin for Avatar: Fire and Ash?

Principal photography for Avatar: Fire and Ash began in Manhattan Beach, California.

The production started on September 25, 2017, simultaneously with filming for Avatar: The Way of Water. Manhattan Beach served as the initial California base for the performance-capture and virtual-production work before the live-action stages moved to New Zealand in early 2019.

This detail is easy to confuse with the film’s later production history. New Zealand became a major location for live-action filming, while Wellington was also home to important visual-effects work. Manhattan Beach remained significant even after the pandemic interrupted New Zealand filming, because virtual production continued there.

The two sequels were developed and shot as a connected production, allowing the filmmakers to work with the same performers, digital environments, and technical systems across both films. Principal photography eventually wrapped in December 2020, although additional pickups and later rewrites continued. The start date and location therefore refer to the beginning of the principal-photography process, not every subsequent shoot or the film’s primary on-screen setting.