Avatar: The Last Airbender season 1: how to watch, trailer, cast, plot and everything we know

After spending five years in development, Avatar: The Last Airbender has finally arrived on Netflix.

The streaming giant has turned several big-ticket animated series into live-action originals, with One Piece, Cowboy Bebop, and Death Note being just some of the most recent examples. And in 2018, Netflix announced they would be working on a "reimagined" live-action remake of Avatar: The Last Airbender, a Nickelodeon series that just so happens to be one of the most beloved animated shows in recent memory.

Avatar fans have already suffered through the less-than-stellar 2010 live-action movie adaptation from M. Night Shyamalan. Early fan reactions to the show seemed positive: does that mean it could end up being one of the best Netflix shows of the year?

Here's everything we know about the live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series right now. 

Avatar: The Last Airbender release date

Netflix's live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series is now available to stream, after hitting the platform on Thursday, February 22, 2024. 

Is Avatar: The Last Airbender getting a second season at Netflix?

Yes! On March 6, Netflix confirmed that Avatar: The Last Airbender had been renewed for two more seasons, with the third series set to conclude the story. This reflects the original cartoon's run, which also told its story across three chapters. 

Along with the news, Netflix shared a clip of the cast learning that they'd be returning for more. It's safe to say the news went down well!

Avatar: The Last Airbender cast

Avatar: The Last Airbender stars Gordon Cormier as Aang, the titular "last airbender". He's the sole surviving member of the Air Nomads after the Fire Nation launched their attack on the rest of the world.

Anyone who's seen the original animated series will know that Aang was found and freed by Katara and Sokka of the Southern Water Tribe, and we've already seen the two siblings in costume as well. Actress and singer Kiawntiio (Beans) is playing Katara, whilst Ian Ousley (Apple TV Plus' Physical) is on hand as Sokka. 

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Katara

Sokka

In mid-October, Netflix also gave us a look at several key figures from the Fire Nation in costume. They are Daniel Dae Kim (Lost) as Fire Lord Ozai, Paul Sun-Hyung Lee (Kim's Convenience) as Uncle Iroh, Dallas Liu (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) as Prince Zuko Elizabeth Yu (May December)  as Princess Azula, and Ken Leung (Industry) as Commander Zhao. You can see them all in costume here: 

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On the winter solstice (December 21, 2023), Netflix gave us a fresh look at even more of the cast in costume from across the Avatar world. 

The new additions to the cast were Casey Camp-Horinek as Kanna (aka Gran Gran), Tamlyn Tomita as Mayor Yukari, Danny Pudi as The Mechanist, Sebastian Amoruso as Jet, and Arden Cho as June. 

Gran Gran is the elder of the Southern Water Tribe and Sokka and Katara's grandmother. Mayor Yukari is the fierce protector of her small community on Kyoshi Island, whilst her daughter, Suki, leads one of the Earth Kingdom's warrior bands on the island. 

The Mechanist, Jet, and June are all part of the Earth Kingdom, too. The Mechanist is a skilled craftsman who was forced to build weapons for the Fire Nation; Jet is a fierce warrior who leads a band of refugee Earth Kingdom fighters (in the animated series), whilst June is a sought-after bounty hunter with no real allegiance to any nation, only to the highest bidder.

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Avatar: The Last Airbender plot 

Netflix's synopsis for the series reflects the opening narration from the original animated series, introducing how the Fire Nation upset the balance between the Nations of Water, Earth, Fire, and Air when they launched the attacks on the rest of the world.  

The only person capable of stopping them would have been the Avatar, the master of all four elements. But as he disappeared, the Fire Nation grew closer and closer to reaching their goal. 

But all that changed when Aang, the last Air Nomad reawoke to take his place as the new Avatar. Alongside Sokka and Katara of the Southern Water Tribe, Aang sets off on a quest to drive back the Fire Nation's forces... all while Prince Zuko tries desperately to track down the reemerged Avatar.

Is there an Avatar: The Last Airbender trailer? 

Yes, several in fact! The latest (and final) trailer arrived just days before the show premiered. In it, we saw Aang's power and hear the young Avatar fretting about the pressure of saving the world.

The full Avatar: The Last Airbender trailer arrived on January 23, and it contained our biggest look at the series yet. We get to see Aang reemerging as the latest incarnation of the Avatar, get to see what the bending arts look like in live-action, and get to see which story beats will feature in this first season. Check it out below:

The first teaser from Netflix's Avatar series arrived on November 9, 2023, and it's an all-out visual feast. We get to see plenty of the Fire Nation, what bending actually looks like in the adaptation, Aang and the Avatar Gang taking flight on Appa, and so much more; it's a promising first look, and it culminated with the release date! Check the trailer out below: 

A brief teaser for the series showcasing the four elemental symbols was released in summer 2023. It doesn't exactly give much away about the show, but it did confirm the series was coming our way at some point in 2024. 

Who worked on Netflix's Avatar: The Last Airbender series? 

Albert Kim (Sleepy Hollow, Nikita) served as showrunner for the live-action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender. 

In a statement ahead of the show's release, Kim was keen to highlight that he wanted to produce an authentic adaptation of the original story. He said: "I didn't want to change things for the sake of change. I didn’t want to modernize the story, or twist it to fit current trends. 

"Aang is not going to be a gritty antihero. Katara is not going to get curtain bangs. (I was briefly tempted to give Sokka a TikTok account though. Think of the possibilities.)"

"Don’t get me wrong. We’ll be expanding and growing the world, and there will be surprises for existing fans and those new to the tale. But throughout this process, our byword has been “authenticity.” To the story. To the characters. To the cultural influences. 

"Authenticity is what keeps us going, both in front of the camera and behind it, which is why we’ve assembled a team unlike any seen before — a group of talented and passionate artists who are working around the clock to bring this rich and incredibly beautiful world to life", Kim added.

Albert Kim boarded the series after the original creative minds behind Avatar, Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, left the live-action project in 2020, with DiMartino explaining on his website that they'd left the series due to creative differences, with him explaining 'whatever version ends up on-screen, it will not be what Bryan and I had envisioned or intended to make.' 

Albert Kim is joined by executive producers Dan Lin (The Lego Movie) and Lindsey Liberatore (Walker) for Rideback and Michael Goi (Swamp Thing), with Michael Goi, Roseanne Liang and Jabbar Raisani serving as directors on the show. 

Japanese composer Takeshi Furukawa provided the score. He announced his involvement on Twitter in February 2023, writing: "It is a tremendous honor to announce my involvement on Netflix's epic live-action remake of Avatar: The Last Airbender, and truly humbled to receive stewardship of the incredible themes from the original series. We are hard at work to elevate this to new heights, so stay tuned!"