Avatar: Fire and Ash Star Jack Champion Interview — Reimagined
Jack Champion, who joined Avatar lore as Spider when he was just 12, has grown up beside the role. He reflects, in a candid conversation with PAPER, that playing Spider helped shape the person he is today. Now 21, Champion is stepping into a moment that fans have anticipated for nearly a decade: the release of Avatar: Fire and Ash, the latest installment in James Cameron’s expansive sci‑fi universe. The film arrives after years of waiting, during which Champion has lived alongside a character who has become as formative as any real-life experience.
Set on the vibrantly lush alien moon of Pandora, Avatar transcends being a mere film franchise. It’s an immersive world built around environmental stewardship, colonial histories, chosen family, and a spiritual bond with nature. Central to this universe are the Na’vi, Pandora’s Indigenous people, whose culture centers on deep emotional and physical ties to their planet. For newcomers to Avatar lore, Spider serves as a natural entry point: a human boy raised among the Na’vi, navigating two worlds, two cultures, and two identities.
Spider — full name Miles Socorro — is the franchise’s clearest bridge between humanity and Pandora. He’s too human to feel fully Na’vi, yet emotionally anchored to the Na’vi through his bond with the Sully family, who raise him as one of their own. That longing for belonging defines Spider, and, in many ways, mirrors Champion’s own experience growing up on a set that became a home away from home.
Production on Avatar began in 2017, when Champion was still a teenager. By the time Fire and Ash hits theaters, he has grown into an adult reflecting on years spent inside one of cinema’s most technically ambitious projects. “It feels like it’s a long time coming,” he notes. “We started in 2017, so there’s been years of anticipation… it’s very overwhelming.” What once felt monumental gradually became routine as the project matured. “After a while, by year three of filming, you normalize the pace and pressure of a blockbuster,” he explains, acknowledging that this normalization is a necessary shield against overwhelm.
The emotional weight of the role remains evident, especially as Fire and Ash pushes Spider into darker emotional territory. Champion identifies Spider’s relationship with the Sully family as the film’s most challenging aspect to perform — a bond defined by love, distance, and heartbreak. “He always wanted to be part of the Sully family,” Champion says, noting his own similar longing to belong when he would return home after months on set. “I also wanted to be a normal kid with normal experiences, but that wasn’t possible while filming for long stretches.”
Champion recalls his first encounter with Avatar as a child, staying up late to watch the original film and feeling transported. “I remember being captivated,” he says. Now, years later, he’s not just part of that world — he’s grown up within it.
In our conversation, Champion discusses the upcoming release of Fire and Ash, what elements of Na’vi culture he would adopt in real life, and what it’s like to grow up inside the world’s highest‑grossing film franchise.
Question: You’ve carried this character through major personal years. What headspace are you in as Fire and Ash nears its release?
Answer: It’s been a long time coming. Since we started in 2017, there’s a palpable sense of anticipation. The hype is almost overwhelming, but in a good way. It’s hard to articulate, but the moment feels both monumental and near. The sense of culmination is real, and it’s exciting to see the project finally reach audiences.
Question: You were 12 when you were cast. How does looking back feel, having grown up with the film? Do you identify with Spider now, or is there a line between the character and the real you?
Answer: Spider feels like a Tarzan‑meets‑Mowgli figure — a wild, driven spirit that the on‑set environment helped me embody. I genuinely believe I wouldn’t be the person I am today without playing him. Some aspects of Spider live in my mind forever. Yet as the years pass, I also see how I’ve changed, and I’m careful to separate the actor from the character in most day‑to‑day contexts.
Question: On a set of this scale, does the size of the production ever feel overpowering, or does it fade into the background while you’re working?
Answer: The scale quickly becomes normal. At first, the magnitude is awe‑inspiring, but you soon settle into a rhythm where the cast and crew feel like a second family. After three years of filming, the blockbuster aura fades, which is a good thing because it frees you to focus on the craft and the relationships at the heart of the story.
Question: Has your portrayal of Spider evolved as you’ve aged? Do you ever need to shift between “you” and the character during scenes?
Answer: Absolutely. When I started, Spider read as a slightly older teen, which matched where the script placed him. As I’ve matured, I’ve also learned how to modulate Spider’s energy to reflect different moments on set. If we ever revisit a scene for pickups, I still need to channel a younger version of him, which is a fun challenge.
Question: Which moment in Spider’s arc in Fire and Ash proved most emotionally demanding for you as an actor?
Answer: The most emotionally taxing arc centers on Spider’s fraught relationship with the Sully family. He longs to belong, and I found that personal parallel resonant — being separated from friends and family during long shoots often left me with a similar ache. Channeling that longing honestly made the scenes more intimate and relatable.
Question: Do you remember watching the first Avatar as a kid?
Answer: I was four when it released, but my earliest memory is from a later viewing at my mom’s house. I stayed up late, mesmerized, and felt a strong “this is magic” reaction. It’s funny to think I later hoped there would be more chapters, and now here we are.
Question: What about Spider do you relate to most, or what trait would you like to borrow for your own life?
Answer: I relate to Spider’s unwavering loyalty to friends and family — a ride‑or‑die mentality that I recognize in myself. I wish I had his fearless bravery and his parkour‑level agility in real life, but I’m grateful to have learned from him and to have the chance to grow alongside the character.
Question: If you could import one aspect of Na’vi culture into daily life, what would it be?
Answer: I’d love a way to connect more directly with nature on a tangible level. If there were a method to tap into that bond and communicate with nature or even with animals and ancestors, it would be incredible for experiencing life more deeply.
Question: For fans who’ve followed Spider’s journey, what should they focus on in Fire and Ash, and what feelings would you like them to leave with?
Answer: I hope audiences feel spiritually and creatively fulfilled — that they’ve quenched a thirst for immersive, imaginative storytelling. As for Spider, I want viewers to follow his emotional journey closely and connect with the evolution of his character throughout the film.
Images courtesy of Jack Champion
