Avatar: The Last Airbender makers Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko are no longer working on the adaptation set for live-action series for Netflix.
The makers announced their departure Wednesday, raising concerns among fans. DiMartino’s long blog post only confirmed these concerns, as the writer and executive producer remarked that “whatever version ends up on the screen, it will not be what Bryan and I had proposed or intended to create.” Both DiMartino and Konietzko mentioned creative differences with Netflix over the direction of the project. The news may have come as a shock Avatar fans, noting that when Netflix announced the project in 2018, both DiMartino and Konietzko’s promotions were heavily promoted.
“When Bryan and I signed up for the project in 2018, we were hired as executive producers and showrunners,” DiMartino wrote. “In a joint announcement for the series, Netflix said it was committed to honoring our vision for this retelling and supporting us in making the series. And we expressed how excited we were for the opportunity to be at the helm. Unfortunately, things did not go as we had hoped. ”
Adaptations often go ahead with different creative teams, but the statements of DiMartino and Konietzko will feel familiar Percy Jackson fans Back in 2018, Percy Jackson author Rick Riordan published his own long blog post about the issues he had early on with the production of the first live-action film, which was released in 2010. Riordan wrote that once he “saw and saw the definitive script what they did on the set, I realized I had to leave for my own peace of mind. ”
Other ads like Alan Moore (Watchmen, Swamp Thing, V for Vendetta) have completely refused adjustments to their work. DiMartino acknowledged that although he “could not control the creative direction of the series”, he was able to control his reaction and decided to leave. “It was the hardest professional decision I have ever had to make, and certainly not one that I took lightly, but it was necessary for my happiness and creative integrity,” DiMartino wrote.
Konietzko added to DiMartino’s frustrations and wrote on Instagram that it was not about her complete control over the series. They were perfectly fine working together ‘as long as we felt that these ideas were in line with the spirit and integrity of Avatar, ”He wrote. As things progressed, both Konietzko and DiMartino “came to the belief that we could not mean the direction of the series.”
Fans have the right to worry: the last time a live action Avatar: The Last Airbender was tried without DiMartino and Konietzko, it did not go exactly well. Sorry, M. Night Shyamalan.
