Why Spider Was Given Avatar: The Way Of Water's One And Only F-Bomb

This post contains spoilers for "Avatar: The Way of Water."

Where "Avatar" framed its story from the point of view of the humans, "The Way of Water" wisely sticks with the Na'vi for most of its runtime. At the beginning of the film, we see how former marine Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) has not only fully assimilated into his Avatar body, but has raised a family among the Omaticaya clan. The return of the humans is unequivocally seen as a very bad thing, as the ghosts of Jake's past have come back to haunt him — rather than causing environmental destruction for the mining of unobtanium, the human-run Resources Development Administration has gone into full-scale colonization.

Among the many humans who were sent back to Earth, a select few were chosen to stay behind, with one of the most intriguing being Miles "Spider" Socorro (Jack Champion). We learn that he was way too young to get sent off in the cryopods, so instead, the dreadlock-wearing white kid was raised on Pandora. Spider's mother was an RDA pilot who was killed during the finale of the original film, with his father being a notable figure in this franchise.

Col. Miles Quartich (Stephen Lang) may have received an arrow to the chest, but his Recom Avatar body has given him a second chance to pick up where his human counterpart left off. But in the midst of his crusade against Jake, he learns about his patriarchal connection to Spider. Lang makes a fun antagonist in the first film, but his bonding with Champion here makes for a more interesting spin on the character that will likely unfold in James Cameron's planned sequels. The two naturally have their back-and-forths, and "The Way of Water" saves its moment of PG-13 frustration for Spider.

In an article from the March 2023 issue of Empire, producer Jon Landau talks about how Spider gets the movie's one allowed F-bomb because the character's impulsive choice to play rescuer to a complicated father figure meets the impact of the word:

"Spider has never really had a family and he's been searching for that. In Quaritch 2.0, he can't help but see a father he never knew, a kindred spirit. When Spider saves him, it was not an easy decision. He's really torn inside so we used the one F-word we're allowed."

The climax of "The Way of Water" is a staggering achievement that further proves that James Cameron can pull off an action sequence like no one's business. A lot happens though, so when Spider is forced to make the crucial decision to save Quaritch, there's really no better thing to say. He spends most of the film being tossed back and forth, as he's not quite human enough to be accepted by the RDA (besides as a pawn), nor is he recognized as a true Na'vi. The internal dilemma prompts him to trust the wrong people, but there are glimmers that he may have actually gotten through to Quaritch in some way or another.

Whether Quaritch takes his expletive-adjacent rescue to heart or not, the ending shows an already strained father-son dynamic that's only going to be tested further in upcoming installments. Jake may have officially adopted Spider into the Sully family, but I'll be damned if Neytiri (Zoë Saldaña) is over Spider's betrayal by a long shot. He's right to be afraid of her.

"Avatar: The Way of Water" is now playing in theaters nationwide.