AceShowbiz - Q'orianka Kilcher, the Indigenous actress known for her role on Yellowstone, has initiated legal action against director James Cameron, alleging unauthorized use of her facial features in the creation of the character Neytiri in the film Avatar. Kilcher, a Native Peruvian star, claims that Cameron instructed his creative team to model Neytiri’s appearance on her face after seeing her performance in the 2006 Terrence Malick movie The New World.

The lawsuit accuses Cameron of exploiting Kilcher’s biometric identity and cultural heritage without credit or financial compensation. According to the legal filing, the filmmaker’s actions represent "a series of deliberate, non-expressive commercial acts" that contributed to the development of a highly profitable film franchise.

Details in the suit reveal that initial concept drawings, molds, and 3-D renderings for Neytiri were based on Kilcher’s likeness without her knowledge or consent. The complaint highlights that while the Avatar franchise publicly sympathizes with Indigenous issues, it profited from the unauthorized use of a real Indigenous individual behind the scenes. Kilcher’s legal team references a 2010 incident in which Cameron gave her a sketch of Neytiri accompanied by a note stating, "Your beauty was my early inspiration for Neytiri. Too bad you were shooting another movie. Next time."

Cameron and his collaborators have previously acknowledged Kilcher as an inspiration for Neytiri’s design. Sculptor and concept artist Jordu Schell told Gizmodo in 2009 that Cameron admired Kilcher’s face from The New World, describing her as a "beautiful ethnic woman." However, Schell also noted that images of other women, including Mary J. Blige, were used during the creative process.

The lawsuit further asserts that Cameron violated California’s recently enacted anti-deepfake pornography laws. Kilcher was 14 years old when The New World was filmed, and the Avatar character Neytiri is depicted engaging in sexual activity in the Na’vi form. Arnold J. Peter, Kilcher’s lead attorney, stated that Cameron “took the unique biometric facial features of a 14-year-old Indigenous girl, ran them through an industrial production process, and generated billions of dollars in profit without ever once asking her permission.” He characterized this as theft rather than filmmaking.