Netflix is still confident in their live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender adaptation, despite the exit of Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. In 2018, it was announced that Netflix would be creating a live-action adaptation of the beloved show. DiMartino and Konietzko, who are the creators of the original Avatar: The Last Airbender animated series, were attached as executive producers and showrunners for the adaptation. The news was well-received by the fan base as it was a long held belief that there wouldn't be any future Avatar series after the end of The Legend of Korra, and having the original creators involved raised hope that the adaptation would be one of quality.
However, both DiMartino and Konietzko have left the project. In a statement released on his website, DiMartino announced that Konietzko and he would be leaving the adaptation, inferring that there were creative differences between the duo and Netflix. DiMartino and Konietzko's exit has left a lot in the air when it comes to fan anticipation for the live-action adaptation. Avatar fans have plenty of reason to be anxious about the series now considering that the failure of M. Night Shyamalan's 2010 film The Last Airbender has been largely attributed to the lack of involvement of DiMartino and Konietzko.
Now, Netflix has released a statement (via Variety) regarding the departure of DiMartino and Konietzko. While the spokesperson expressed sadness at the duos' exit, they still have high hopes about what their creative team has been working on. The statement reads:
“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.”
The details of why DiMartino and Konietzko exited are still not publicly known. In DiMartino's statement, he mentioned that both Konietzko and he were not given the creative freedom to bring about their vision as Netflix had promised them at the beginning of the project. It is unknown exactly what that vision was, and why Netflix seemingly pushed back on it. Given that Netflix had been working with DiMartino and Konietzko since the adaptation's conception, one would think they would be willing to support the creators' vision. In previous statements about the adaptation, both DiMartino and Konietzko had mentioned that they wanted to change up the existing Avatar world - implying that their vision of the live-action series wouldn't be a 1:1 remake of The Last Airbender cartoon.
The future of the A:TLA adaptation is in a perilous position. While the departure of DiMartino and Konietzko doesn't mean the show will be bad, it does leave fans in a much more uneasy state than before. However, the creative differences between the duo and Netflix do pose an interesting discussion on the nature of the adaptation. With DiMartino and Konietzko implying in the past that they wanted to create something new with this adaptation, the push back from Netflix might have been about making a more straightforward remake. Given the enormous success of the original cartoon on Netflix, a direct adaptation of the source materiel that doesn't really change anything would still probably be successful. If Netflix's intention is to create as direct of an adaptation as possible, their confidence in the live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender isn't unfounded, even with the unfortunate departure of DiMartino and Konietzko.
Source: Variety