What is the Avatar: The Last Airbender Netflix live-action series release date? One of the best animated series of all time, Avatar has been delighting us for over a decade. 13 years after its finale (and in the aftermath of the brilliant sequel, The Legend of Korra), we’re diving back into spirits and elemental bending.
Avatar: The Last Airbender has been given a new lease on life. Once again, we’ll watch Aang master the elements to restore balance. The original characters and story made it one of the best TV series ever. So here’s everything you need to know about the upcoming series, including when it might drop new on Netflix.
Avatar: The Last Airbender Netflix series release date speculation
Avatar: The Last Airbender will be released on Netflix in 2024, but there’s no exact date yet.
Netflix confirmed the 2024 window during its TUDUM 2023 event. Filming wrapped in June 2022, so we expect the show in the first half of 2024.
The reason for the big delay between the end of filming and the release date could be due to the heavy visual effects needed for a series about elemental bending.
Netflix needed to create impressive and realistic ways to show bending if the jump to live-action is to work, which takes plenty of time and money. Hopefully, it’s worth the wait.
What is Avatar: The Last Airbender Netflix series about?
Netflix’s The Last Airbender will begin with young Aang awakening to a war-ravaged world. With new allies Sokka and Katara, his quest is to restore harmony as the next Avatar.
A lot of us know how this part goes! But if you don’t: the four nations, Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water, once lived in peace, with the Avatar, who can master all four elements, keeping the balance.
That all changed when the Fire Nation (yes, you guessed it) attacked! They wiped out the Air Nomads and waged war.
Aang, a young Air Nomad, reawakens after being frozen for 100 years. Finding new friends in Katara and Sokka, siblings from the Water Nation, he must embark on a journey to reach his full potential and stop the Fire Nation from conquering.
Netflix is sticking to the broad strokes of the animated series. However, there will be changes. Netflix says this is a “reimagining”. So it won’t be a 1:1 remake.
One major concern is that, in August 2020, the animation’s original creators Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino left the production, citing creative differences.
In an open letter to fans, DiMartino wrote: “Netflix’s live-action adaptation of Avatar has the potential to be good. It might turn out to be a show many of you end up enjoying. But what I can be certain about is that whatever version ends up on-screen, it will not be what Bryan [Konietzko] and I had envisioned or intended to make.” Ouch.
Avatar doesn’t have a great track record when it comes to adaptations. No one wants a repeat of M. Night Shyamalan’s 2010 movie – which currently holds an impressively low 5% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Hopefully, any big changes to the script or attempts to develop and flesh out characters in Netflix’s series don’t hamper the things fans love. We’re looking forward to seeing what this new adaptation brings to the table.
Who is in the Avatar: The Last Airbender Netflix series cast?
Gordon Cormier stars as live-action Aang in Avatar: The Last Airbender’s cast. Alongside him are Kiawentiio as Katara, Ian Ousley as her brother Sokka, and Dallas Liu’s Prince Zuko.
Fans got their first look at the four actors in their roles at TUDUM 2023.
Meanwhile, Commander Zhao (one of the main antagonists) is Ken Leung, Utkarsh Ambudkar is King Bumi, Arden Cho is June, and Aang’s air nomad mentor Gyatso will be played by Kay Siu Lim. Lost’s Daniel Dae Kim has also joined as Fire Lord Ozai.
Avatar: The Last Airbender Netflix live-action series cast list:
- Gordon Cormier as Aang
- Kiawentiio as Katara
- Ian Ousley as Sokka
- Dallas Liu as Prince Zuko
- Paul Sun-Hyung Lee as Uncle Iroh
- Daniel Dae Kim as Fire Lord Ozai
- Ken Leung as Commander Zhao
- Kay Siu Lim as Gyatso
- Elizabeth Yu as Azula
- Yvonne Chapman as Kyoshi
- Maria Zhang as Suki
- Casey Camp-Horinek as Gran Gran
- Utkarsh Ambudkar as King Bumi
- Arden Cho as June
- Danny Pudi as The Mechanist
- Momona Tamada as Ty Lee
- Thalia Tran as Mai
- Amber Midthunder as Princess Yue
- A Martinez as Pakku
- Nathaniel Arcand as Chief Arnook
- Hiro Kanagawa as Fire Lord Sozin
- C.S. Lee as Avatar Roku
Is there an Avatar: The Last Airbender Netflix series trailer?
The Avatar: The Last Airbender teaser trailer was released on November 9, 2023, by Netflix. We also got a short teaser in June.
The above trailer promises an epic quest across the four nations and shows live-action bending in all its glory. Aang thaws out, Prince Zuko descends into darkness, and the world itself looks suitably majestic. The thing that really makes the footage sing, though, is the music.
The first teaser, released previously, was a short clip that showed the four nations’ symbols. You can watch that below.
Where can I watch the Avatar: The Last Airbender Netflix series?
The Avatar: The Last Airbender live-action series will stream exclusively on Netflix.
If you’d like to watch the original series, the first two seasons of Avatar: The Last Airbender are also on Netflix. So, there’s plenty of time to catch up.
If you don’t have a subscription, you can see what the Netflix price currently is and see if it’s worthwhile. For recommendations, see our hand-picked lists of the best Netflix series and best Netflix movies.
How many episodes are in the Avatar: The Last Airbender Netflix series?
All seasons of Avatar: The Last Airbender will have eight episodes on Netflix, starting with the upcoming first season, ‘Book 1’.
This is a downgrade from the animation, which had 17-21 episodes per season. Though, live-action episodes will likely be longer, so don’t worry too much about all your favorite storylines and characters being cut.
For more series in the same vein as Avatar and The Legend of Korra, check out the best animated series and everything you need to know about the Percy Jackson TV series release date.
Alternatively, we also have lists of the best Netflix anime and best cartoon characters.