After spending five years in development, Avatar: The Last Airbender is making its way to Netflix in 2024, and, thanks to a new trailer, we finally know when we can watch it!
The streaming giant has turned several big-ticket animated series into live-action originals, with One Piece, Cowboy Bebop, and Death Note being just some of the most recent examples. And in 2018, Netflix announced they would be working on a "reimagined" live-action remake of Avatar: The Last Airbender, a Nickelodeon series that just so happens to be one of the most beloved animated shows in recent memory.
Avatar fans have already suffered through the less-than-stellar 2010 live-action movie adaptation from M. Night Shyamalan. Hopefully, this new spin on the franchise will prove more successful; could it end up being one of the best Netflix shows?
Here's everything we know about the live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series right now.
Avatar: The Last Airbender release date
Netflix revealed the Avatar: The Last Airbender release date at the end of a teaser trailer that came along in Geeked Week 2023. You can look forward to streaming the series on Thursday, February 22, 2024.
Your first full look at Avatar: The Last Airbender is coming 🌪️ TOMORROW 🌪️ #GeekedWeek pic.twitter.com/rD74qSNIecNovember 8, 2023
Avatar: The Last Airbender cast
Avatar: The Last Airbender stars Gordon Cormier as Aang, the titular "last airbender" (you can see him in costume at the top of this article). He's the sole surviving member of the Air Nomads after the Fire Nation launched their attack on the rest of the world.
Anyone who's seen the original animated series will know that Aang was found and freed by Katara and Sokka of the Water Tribe, and we've already seen the two siblings in costume as well. Actress and singer Kiawntiio (Beans) is playing Katara, whilst Ian Ousley (Apple TV Plus' Physical) is on hand as Sokka.
In mid-October, Netflix also gave us a look at several key figures from the Fire Nation in costume. They are Daniel Dae Kim (Lost) as Fire Lord Ozai, Paul Sun-Hyung Lee (Kim's Convenience) as Uncle Iroh, Dallas Liu (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) as Prince Zuko Elizabeth Yu (May December) as Princess Azula, and Ken Leung (Industry) as Commander Zhao. You can see them all in costume here:
Avatar: The Last Airbender plot
Netflix's synopsis for the series reflects the opening narration from the original animated series, introducing how the Fire Nation upset the balance between the Nations of Water, Earth, Fire, and Air when they launched the attacks on the rest of the world.
The only person capable of stopping them would have been the Avatar, the master of all four elements. But as he disappeared, the Fire Nation grew closer and closer to reaching their goal.
But all that changed when Aang, the last Air Nomad reawoke to take his place as the new Avatar. Alongside Sokka and Katara of the Southern Water Tribe, Aang sets off on a quest to drive back the Fire Nation's forces... all while Prince Zuko tries desperately to track down the reemerged Avatar.
During Netflix Geeked Week 2023, we got a new poster from the series that showed us two of Aang's faithful animal companions: Appa the flying sky bison and Momo the winged lemur.
Your first full look at Avatar: The Last Airbender is coming 🌪️ TOMORROW 🌪️ #GeekedWeek pic.twitter.com/rD74qSNIecNovember 8, 2023
Is there an Avatar: The Last Airbender trailer?
The first teaser from Netflix's Avatar series arrived on November 9, 2023, and it's an all-out visual feast. We get to see plenty of the Fire Nation, what bending actually looks like in the adaptation, Aang and the Avatar Gang taking flight on Appa, and so much more; it's a promising first look, and it culminated with the release date!. Check the trailer out below:
A teaser for the series showcasing the four elemental symbols was released in summer 2023. It doesn't exactly give much away about the show, but it did confirm the series was coming our way at some point in 2024.
Who is working on Netflix's Avatar: The Last Airbender series?
Albert Kim (Sleepy Hollow, Nikita) is on hand as showrunner for the live-action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender.
In a statement, Kim was keen to highlight that he wanted to produce an authentic adaptation of the original story. In a statement on the Netflix website, he said: "I didn't want to change things for the sake of change. I didn’t want to modernize the story, or twist it to fit current trends.
"Aang is not going to be a gritty antihero. Katara is not going to get curtain bangs. (I was briefly tempted to give Sokka a TikTok account though. Think of the possibilities.)"
"Don’t get me wrong. We’ll be expanding and growing the world, and there will be surprises for existing fans and those new to the tale. But throughout this process, our byword has been “authenticity.” To the story. To the characters. To the cultural influences.
"Authenticity is what keeps us going, both in front of the camera and behind it, which is why we’ve assembled a team unlike any seen before — a group of talented and passionate artists who are working around the clock to bring this rich and incredibly beautiful world to life", Kim added.
Albert Kim boarded the series after the original creative minds behind Avatar, Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, left the live-action project in 2020, with DiMartino explaining on his website that they'd left the series due to creative differences, with him explaining 'whatever version ends up on-screen, it will not be what Bryan and I had envisioned or intended to make.'
Albert Kim is joined by executive producers Dan Lin (The Lego Movie) and Lindsey Liberatore (Walker) for Rideback and Michael Goi (Swamp Thing), with Michael Goi, Roseanne Liang and Jabbar Raisani serving as directors on the show.
Japanese composer Takeshi Furukawa is on hand to score the project. He announced his involvement on Twitter in February 2023, writing: "It is a tremendous honor to announce my involvement on Netflix's epic live-action remake of Avatar: The Last Airbender, and truly humbled to receive stewardship of the incredible themes from the original series. We are hard at work to elevate this to new heights, so stay tuned!"
It is a tremendous honor to announce my involvement on Netflix’s epic live-action remake of Avatar: The Last Airbender, and truly humbled to receive stewardship of the incredible themes from the original series. We are hard at work to elevate this to new heights, so stay tuned! pic.twitter.com/CgC4UD6sW5February 17, 2023
