Netflix Confident in Pushing Avatar: The Last Airbender Series without Creators

Fans were shocked when it was announced that original show creators Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino were leaving the Avatar: The Last Airbender live-action series, but we kind of had it coming; especially since we haven't got any significant update since the show was announced.

With the exit of the original showrunners, Netflix though, is still confident in pushing forward with the series. They released a statement to The Hollywood Reporter saying:

"We have complete respect and admiration for Michael and Bryan and the story that they created in the Avatar animated series… Although they have chosen to depart the live-action project, we are confident in the creative team and their adaptation."

We don't know specifically why the duo would leave the show, but it has been boiled down to creative differences. Co-creator Konietzko has said that Netflix had broken its promise to follow through on their support for the creators' original vision, citing a negative and non-supporting environment. He even wrote:

"To be clear, this was not a simple matter of us not getting our way. Mike and I are collaborative people; we did not need all the ideas to come from us. As long as we felt those ideas were in line with the spirit and integrity of Avatar, we would have happily embraced them. However, we ultimately came to the belief that we would not be able to meaningfully guide the direction of the series."

If anything, the fans are seeing this as a grim omen, and are already expecting Netflix to just cancel the show. If you ask me, they don't really need to adapt Airbender again, but really just expand on the world. I'm sure the adaptation would do better if they just made a film following the adult Team Avatar in an adventure, or maybe follow a whole new Avatar, perhaps the one after Korra.

We don't know when the live-action show will come out, but you can catch the original animated series now on Netflix. The Legend of Korra arrives to the streaming service tomorrow.

Read Also: Last Airbender Creators Exit Netflix's Live-Action Avatar Series