It's official: Zoë Saldana and Sam Worthington will reprise their roles as Neytiri and Jake Sully in the next three Avatar movies, E! News has confirmed.

Director James Cameron is making the sequels back-to-back-to-back, much like filmmaker Peter Jackson's The Hobbit fantasy series. The second Avatar movie will hit theaters in December 2016, with the third to follow in December 2017 and the fourth in December 2018.

"Jake Sully is a rare combination of passion, strength, street smarts and soul, which requires a lot from an actor. Sam brought to the role a combination of sensitivity, vulnerability and strength," Cameron said. "Zoë captured every aspect of the character I envisioned, bringing to Neytiri a mix of delicacy, fierceness and incredible physicality. I am beyond pleased they'll be returning with us to Pandora."