Avatar: The Last Airbender fans have much to be excited about, thanks to several new projects in development. But there's one aspect of the upcoming productions that might rub some people the wrong way. It looks like the voice actors from the original series may not return.
New Avatar: Last Airbender projects have been teased for a while, including a trilogy of movies and a live-action Netflix series. But while the upcoming series may be the subject of some debate among fans due to its departure from the original show's creators, the real news could be regarding the several Avatar: The Last Airbender films set to be released in the future. Little is known about their subject matter, particularly with their release still years off. However, a new piece of info has just come to the surface, and it's potentially troubling.
As reported by Collider, voice actress Jessie Flower (a.k.a. Michaela Jae Murphy) from the original Avatar: The Last Airbender animated series recently appeared at MomoCon, delivering potentially devastating news to fans. According to Flower, the impression she's gotten from the production so far is that few, if any, of the voice actors from the original would be called back for the first new film set to release in 2025. "If you're an actor, you're always interested in being called back for a project," she said at the con. "I think they're going to be recasting for pretty much everything... It's not like people are going to clamor and be like, 'Bring back the originals!'"
She may be wrong with that last point. Fans know Flower as the voice of the hilarious and powerful blind earthbender Toph in Avatar: The Last Airbender; it's difficult to imagine they'd take this in stride. Along with Zach Tyler Eisen (Aang), Mae Whitman (Katara), Jack De Sena (Sokka), and Dante Basco (Zuko), Flower helped make up a memorable cast of voice actors whose performances hold up remarkably well. However, she doesn't seem to hold any ill will. "They have a vision, and they execute it the way they want to," Flower added regarding The Last Airbender creators Bryan Konietzko and Michael DiMartino, who are also working on the movie. "I'm sad because I would come love to come back and do stuff, but you know I'll be cheering from the audience with everyone else!"
The upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender movie will reportedly follow the main characters from the original series but depict older versions of them. Keeping with the original show's trend of maintaining unusually deep lore, the new story will focus on their efforts to pick up the pieces after the devastating war with the Fire Nation. This period featured Aang bringing back the Air Nomads after the Fire Nation wiped them out, which could be an interesting plot point.
However difficult it may be to admit, setting the story between Avatar: The Last Airbender and its sequel series The Legend of Korra would facilitate a recasting of most characters. The main characters were all kids at the time, and Eisen has seemingly retired from acting altogether, meaning Aang would need a new actor at the very least. But this movie is from the original creators, so fans might want to wait before bringing out the pitchforks.
The Avatar: The Last Airbender movie is set to be released on October 10, 2025.
Source: Collider