A release date has already been staked out by Paramount and Nickelodeon for what they surely hope is the first in a franchise — M. Night Shyamalan’s live-action adaptation of the Miyazaki-influenced animated TV series AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER will gust into theaters on the big holiday weekend of July 2, 2010.
Unsurprisingly, the movie will drop the AVATAR header to avoid confusion with Jim Cameron’s sci-fi juggernaut, which arrives in December of 2009. THE LAST AIRBENDER, the first of a planned trilogy (but what isn’t?), is set in a fantasy world and follows a reluctant young hero who can manipulate the elements.
Shyamalan, who’s writing and directing THE LAST AIRBENDER, also recently dropped knowledge on Empire about his plans for the ambitious FX-filled project. He discusses the dense mythology of the property in great detail and mentions Buddhist and Hindu philosophies and Shakespearean overtones (plus STAR WARS and THE MATRIX, naturally), and insists he’ll use special effects as a storytelling tool and not shallow spectacle. See Shyamalan’s specifics RIGHT HERE.
Meanwhile, Shyamalan’s global terror THE HAPPENING opens June 13th.
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