THE Avatar: The Last Air Master the deductible should get even bigger.
Nickelodeon is launching Avatar Studios, a division designed to create original content covering animation series and films based on the franchise world.
Original creators and executive producers Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko will direct the studio as co-creative directors, reporting to Ramsey Naito, president of Nickelodeon Animation.
Avatar Studios will produce content for platforms including Paramount + and Nickelodeon, as well as third-party platforms and theatrical releases.
The first project is a theatrical animated film that should start production later this year.
Nickelodeon’s Avatar: The Last Air Master, which follows the adventures of the main protagonist Aang and his friends, who must save the world by defeating Fire Lord Ozai and ending the destructive war with the Fire Nation, shown for three seasons between 2005 and 2008.
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It was followed by The legend of Korra, which was released on Nickelodeon in 2012 and lasted four seasons.
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The property was later translated into a series of comic books written by the co-creator of the TV series DiMartino, a live action film starring Dev Patel and directed by M. Night Shyamalan and Netflix is doing a live action Avatar: The Last Air Master series, although without the involvement of Dante DiMartino and Konietzko.
“Avatar: The Last Air Master and Korra have grown at least ten times in popularity since their original success was aired on Nickelodeon, and Ramsey Naito and I are incredibly excited to have Mike and Bryan’s brilliant talent on board to run a studio dedicated to expanding his characters and world into new content and formats for fans everywhere, ”said Brian Robbins, president of ViacomCBS Kids & Family.
“Creator-driven stories and characters have been the hallmarks of Nickelodeon, and Avatar Studios is a way to give Mike and Bryan the resources and the clue to open up your imagination even further and dive deeper into the action and mythology Avatar as we simultaneously expand that world and the world of content available on Paramount + and Nickelodeon, ”he added.