The Last Airbender’ Movie Is Skipping Theaters

There’s been a rumbling in the world of The Last Airbender. Years after Paramount announced that Avatar would make the animated leap to the big screen with a new movie about Aang and his friends, that movie is now taking a step back for a streaming debut instead—as part of a plan to keep the beloved franchise firmly on smaller screens.

The shocking news out of Paramount and Avatar Studios today confirmed that Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender will now no longer hit theaters on October 9, 2026, and will instead stream exclusively on Paramount+ sometime this fall. The move comes alongside the upcoming arrival of the next TV series in the franchise, Avatar: Seven Havens, as part of a plan to firmly realign the animated iteration of the franchise as a TV/streaming venture.

“The Avatar Universe has captivated audiences for two decades, and Paramount+ is proud to be the exclusive streaming home for its beloved animated incarnation,” Jane Wiseman, Paramount+’s head of originals, said in a statement (via Variety). “The Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender and Avatar: Seven Havens represent the next evolution of storytelling from Avatar Studios—bringing together remarkable talent both in front of and behind the camera to deliver the epic adventures and emotional depth fans have come to expect. These additions, alongside The Legend of Korra and the original series, solidify Paramount+ as the destination for the animated Avatar Universe.”

An animated Avatar movie was first announced back when Avatar Studios was formed in 2021 and ultimately revealed to be part of a three-movie plan to bring the animated iteration of Avatar to the big screen for the first time since M. Night Shyamalan’s 2010 live-action flop. It was eventually confirmed as a movie following an older Aang and his friends between the events of The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra—and originally planned to hit theaters this year, before moving to a January 2026 slot, and then delayed to the October release slot it has just lost.

What this means for Avatar Studios’ two other movies—little has been said about them since the confirmation of plans for their existence, including any story details—remains to be seen. But even as Paramount’s new era alongside Skydance wants to pivot back to the big screen in some cases, Avatar is seemingly not going to be one of those franchises making the move.

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