10 Best CGI Movie Characters Ever

6. The Na'vi - Avatar

Lord of the Rings Gollum
20th Century Fox

Regardless of the hindsight thought process on Avatar – paper-thin plot, Sam Worthington briefly going A-list, isn’t it just Pocahontas with more blue? – it’s impossible to deny the impact that James Cameron’s 2009 movie has had on the entire film industry.

A decade after its release, and Avatar still stands tall as the highest grossing film in the history of cinema. With its $2.78 billion box office haul still just about edging out Avengers: Endgame’s $2.77 billion return, Avatar continues to reign supreme.

It’s easy to knock the picture when looking back on it, but it cannot be understated just how game-changing Avatar was. After the failed ‘80s attempt at delivering 3D films, Avatar finally gave audiences an extra dimension to their viewing experience. With its world of Pandora and its Na’vi race, the film delivered creatures and landscapes that took CGI and SFX to an entirely different level of jaw-dropping.

Based around performance capture, the Na’vi were a completely computer generated race whose appearance and movement had audiences believing that they themselves were in the magical world of Pandora. What Cameron and his team did was a monumental achievement in film – although it’s still questionable whether Cameron really needs to have four Avatar sequels booked in for upcoming releases.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.