In a recent chat with Entertainment Weekly, Albert Kim pointed out the challenges of carrying the beloved animated series into a live-action format, highlighting the need to plan for the cast’s aging, which might require a time jump between seasons.
That’s why the team removed a major part of the main story, Sozin’s Comet, from the upcoming Netflix series:
“The Comet was their ticking clock. We removed that particular ticking clock from our show for now because we couldn’t know exactly how old our actors would be for the subsequent seasons.”
They Needed To Take The Time Span Into Account
In the original show, Comet’s arrival boosts the firebenders’ power, giving Aang and his team roughly a one-year deadline to defeat the Fire Nation. So, the showrunner went on:
“We definitely thought about that going into Season 1 so that we can accommodate for puberty, adolescence, time passing — all of those fun things that happen to real-life human beings that don’t happen to animated characters.”
The premise for season one remains true to the animated series, with Katara and Sokka finding Aang in ice and setting off a chain of events that pits them against the Fire Nation.
The First Season Is On The Way
‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’ is still in its early days, with no confirmation for a second season. The team is currently focused on wrapping up the first season, scheduled to premiere on February 22:
“There’s still a lot of work that has to be done, and it’s a race to the finish line at this point. So right now, that’s all I’m consumed with. I don’t want to think about tomorrow yet.”
Filming for the first season concluded in British Columbia in the summer of 2022. Aang actor Gordon Cormier and Katara actress Kiawentiio aged up three years since their audition for the show. Cormier is now 14, while Kiawentiio is 17.
