Three Avatar: The Last Airbender animated movies are now in development

Water, Earth, Fire, Air. Nickelodeon and Paramount Pictures have announced that three movies based on the Avatar: The Last Universe World are in development, with Lauren Montgomery at the helm of the first one.

These new projects were announced during a special presentation at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival. These projects will include the presence of a number of veterans. Bryan Konietzko and Michael DiMartino, co-creators of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra will be producers along with Eric Coleman, previous Executive producer of The Last Airbender. Meanwhile, Lauren Montgomery is known by being the storyboard artist of the series’ final season and director of other animated series like Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated, Young Justice and Voltron: Legendary Defender.

“As original creators, Mike and Bryan expand the Avatar universe with us, we’re keeping it all in the family with Lauren bringing the same kind of expert, beautiful work she did on the original series to her new directing duties on the forthcoming theatrical,” said Ramsey Naito, who serves as President of Animation & Development at Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon Animation.

An ever-evolving story

Since the end of The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra series, the stories of their protagonists have continued through other media, such as comic books and prequel novels. Due to its recent announcement, it is still unknown which eras or stories these films could narrate, being able to adapt the previously mentioned comics or tell entirely new adventures of the Avatar team.

The recently formed Avatar Studios is a Nickelodeon Animation division designed to create new material related to The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra world. In the meantime, Netflix is developing a live-action adaptation of the original series, although co-creators Konietzko and DiMartino departed due to creative differences.

Source | Deadline