New The Last Airbender Movie Set Photo
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Coming to us via cellphone no doubt, here’s a brand new set photo from the upcoming film “The Last Airbender”, based on the hit Nickelodeon cartoon series “Avatar: The Last Airbender”. “The Last Airbender” by director M. Night Shyamalan (The Happening) stars Jackson Rathbone (The Twilight Saga: New Moon), Dev Patel (Slumdog Millionaire), Cliff Curtis (Push) and Seychelle Gabriel (The Spirit).
Synopsis: The film is set in a fantasy world where the four elements of earth, air, water, and fire can be controlled through martial arts called bending, and the ruthless flame-manipulating Fire Nation is waging war to control the other nations of the world. At the same time a young boy named Aang, the last surviving wind manipulator or Airbender and is also the Avatar, the physical incarnation of the world itself who possesses the ability to manipulate all four elements, is on a quest to stop the Firebenders and save the world, with his friends Katara, a water-manipulating Waterbender from the South Pole, and her brother Sokka. But the skilled and vicious Prince Zuko, the banished Prince of the Fire Nation, is on the trail of the Avatar, seeking to regain his lost honor by capturing him.
Stay tuned to Shockya.com for the latest from “The Last Airbender”.
The Last Airbender Set Photo
May 26th, 2009 at 2:34 am
woah cool az cant waitto watch jackson play sokka
May 27th, 2009 at 12:14 am
To take a show that is deeply rooted in Asian culture and tradition, and make it into a movie that has thus far only served to perpetuate the aversion towards lead Asian actors in American cinema is utterly disgusting. This movie is an insult to the original creators of the show and all those involved, the true spirit of the show, and the fans that saw something so much more than a kid’s show. This post calls for everyone who believes in a just cause to stand up and protest this movie. We are not mindless fools who will buy into a product simply because it is stamped with a familar title.
Avatar forver!
May 28th, 2009 at 11:21 pm
Ok first off Lion Turtle this has been said before but i guess i can say it again. Avatar is yes based on Asian culture but you obvously dont realize that the entire avatar story is centered around a full world based on nations. And to limit these nations to just asian ancestry is plain ignorant. I mean yes With asian culture it’s cool if you want the entire movie to be asian decent actors i mean thats cool to you but what you and the other people who say this same thing over and over again dont realize is that the cretors are all for this movie and also i mean seriously… People need to calm this down about saying “oh they are white washing this movie so lets protest and not see this movie” it’s people like you that cause greif to film makers and everyone within the film industry. If you dont think it’s right and you dont wanna see this movie great all for it to you. But DO NOT TELL PEOPLE TO DO THE SAME AND BELIEVE YOUR BELIEFS!!!! just keep opinions like that down I mean you can have your opinion on the website and in comments but dont try to pursuade people into believing what you want. Let people have their own comments as well.
Oh and P.S. I think this movie will be great. Dav Patel is in it and he only picks movies with amazing scripts and guess what…. He’s in this movie so Obviously it has a great script and also the creators of AVATAR like this script because they are excited about this movie I mean like extremely excited. I hope that people will see this movie but it’s their choice so If you wanna see this movie see it and if you dont then dont but I personally will see this movie and cant wait til next summer.
May 29th, 2009 at 6:19 am
If Avatar is based on Asian culture, and was stated by the creators as being an “Asian Fantasy” world, then how can you say that the four nations within that world are not Asian? You said that Avatar is based on Asian culture. The world, the nations, and the people are all inspired by Asian culture. So, why not give blossoming young American-Asian actors this great opportunity to play lead rolls in the film? It is not ignorant, it is logical.
Also, I have yet to hear one single word of approval for this movie from the original creators of the show. I cannot imagine that they would invest so much time, money, and effort of their lives into this show only to see it be turned into a live action movie that, in casting calls, managed to discriminate against Asians as well as other minorities. Examples of the creators’ efforts to make this a culturally accurate show include researching Asian culture, philosophy, and history, traveling the world for actual landmarks to use in the show, hiring cultural consultants, enrolling the animators in martial arts classes to get the unique techniques of each element with an actual form of martial art, having the crew involved with Avatar purchase and watch Fooley Cooley (an anime), and actually saying in interviews that the show was intended to be an Asian based epic fantasy. The latest they have stated about the movie was that it was not their decision to make a movie. I don’t think that sounds like they are all for this movie. It implies a certain degree of distance between them and the movie in production.
I do not see what is wrong with causing grief to film makers when they insist upon openly practicing racism, disrespect, and cultural insensitivity. It are those who make such films that allow the issue of racial discrimination to be reduced to a trivial matter to be shrugged off like it is no big deal. No one should be made inadequate or subordinate due to race. I would hope you would agree.
By telling me to keep my opinions down while proclaiming your own, you are being incredibly fascist. You are allowing only one side of a story to be told and only one opinion to be heard, spoken, and therefore thought. I did not tell others to believe my beliefs (although I hope we can all agree that racism is bad). Nor did I tell anyone to keep their comments down or tell them that they may not voice their opinions. I am, however, calling for everyone who believes in a just cause to stand up and protest this movie!
WE ARE NOT MINDLESS FOOLS WHO WILL BUY INTO A PRODUCT SIMPLY BECAUSE IT IS STAMPED WITH A FAMILIAR TITLE!
Avatar forever!
May 31st, 2009 at 4:16 pm
Well… if you watch the dvds of the show, you will see a long interview of M. NIght Shyamalan and the creators, and THEY said that Night was really loyal to the spirit of the original story, and the important thing is this connection, OK! we have asian kids but we dont have a good story, so fucking what ? Remember, everybody protested when Bryan Singer announced Ian Mckellen as Magneto, but nowadays you cannot imagine another actor playing this role…
Peter Jackson also made changes with LOTR but he was sucessful with that…so,here in brazil I am really waiting for this movie to come soon, with white, black, indians or asians, important is the result…
June 4th, 2009 at 10:18 pm
There’s a lot of simple-minded, ignorant people out there who uses a lot of “emotionally-appealing” indirect arguments, such as “its not about race” or “its all about the story” but has failed to answer the big question.
What’s so wrong in casting asian talents in an obviously asian-oriented storyline?
They could’ve easily done it, but those involved in the production CHOOSES not to do so. Its politics. Such utter ignorance is what allows to the production of this movie to happen in the 1st place.
Lion-turtle is absolutely correct, this movie is a pile of garbage.
Hence I can’t believe there are still people out there who thinks its ok that the powers-to-be are casting non-asians in an OBVIOUSLY asian-oriented storyline. It defies logic and people still make excuses how the rules “can” be bent to NOT accommodate asian faces to be seen by the public.
Asian architecture, asian names, asian writings, asian mythologies, asian martial arts, mongoloid-based civilisations (chinese, japanese, tibetan, eskimos) - can anyone still defy that none of these matter? Can any of you still make excuses about “oh but its not about race?” hollywood has obviously done a good job on brainwashing all these ignorant people into thinking that race does not matter in Avatar.
To any conscientious objectors out there: VOTE WITH YOUR WALLETS, and do NOT see see this garbage.
June 6th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
Okay Lion Turtle, I am a HUGE fan of this show. When I say huge, I mean I watch this show literally all the time. I do agree with what you said about Avatar being based off asain culture. Its obvious that it is. But when you said the whole cast should be asain, thats when I say no. I’ve heard that same statement from and uncountable number of people, but if you really look at the four nations, you’d notice that the poeple act different. What I mean is, the only two nations that really resemble an asain people are the Air Nomads and The Fire Nation. The Water Tribe leans more toward a Native American culture and The Earth Kingdom resembles Americans or some sort of moder day people. What I’m trying to say is, an intire asain cast wouldn’t give the same feel that the show does. Do I think the current casting gives this feel, not entirely. But if you look at the actors you’d notice that the poeple in the fire nation tend to have darker skin, and people in the water tribe are just white. At least they are getting groups of people who look different like in the show. I don’t know the actors racial backround and frankly I’m not going to put to much time in it to find out, but by making it an entire asain cast, none of the actors would look like the characters and to me thats one of the most important things about a movie based off of a show. I’m not trying to start an argument but I don’t think this movie should be called garbage just yet, especially since the people who wrote the script for the show are writing it for the movie as well. I’d like to see what you have to say to this opinion Lion Turtle.
June 7th, 2009 at 2:02 pm
Kuzon,
First of all, with a name like that, I don’t doubt you are a huge fan of the show. :)
You’re right about the water tribe being more closely related to Native Americans rather than Asians. I wholly agree with you there. And yes, there are many differences between each of the nations, including skin tone and other physical characteristics. Ideally, the actors hired for the movie would have more closely represented those seen in the cartoon. So, we would have matching skin tone and logically race for each of the nations between the film and the animation: dark skinned for the water tribe, and lighter skinned for the earth, fire, and air nations.
My biggest issue with this movie is the blatant racism in favoring white actors as lead characters. The timeline of events implies racist practices, disrespect to the source material, and a complete insensitivity to the cultures and peoples that inspired the animation in the first place. Here is a rough timeline: Paramount casting all white lead actors (water,fire, and air nation), the backlash from fans, Jesse quitting and replaced with Dev, more public outcry from media and ethnic associations, and then Paramount stating that each nation was originally intended to be of a different ethnicity (air and water = white, fire = indian, earth = asian and african). There are many holes in their statement when compared to the events and their actions leading up to that statement. Which is why I continue to be disgusted with paramount and disappointed with the film’s progress.
But back to your original point. You’re right, the entire world of Avatar should not be populated with Asians (specifially East Asians). There were also Inuit and Indian influences and cultures in Avatar as well. Logically, the film should follow suit.
Yes, I am slightly pleased to see that the film will be more diverse than initially implied. Yes, it is good that they are including East Asians and Middle Eastern ethnicities in the film. However, their recent attempts to “add diversity” to their cast appear to be more for the sake of covering their own butts rather than actually creating a quality film. Their recent attempts have been insulting and condescending. As though any addition of people “not white” just thrown into the movie haphazardly would make the fans go wild with appreciation. Not the case.
So, that’s my opinion. If anything I would strongly recommend you to go to http://www.racebending.com and read the timeline of events. They also have copies of the original casting calls sent out when Paramount was describing the types of actors they would like to play Zuko, Katara, and Sokka. Go to this site and the Aang aint white (sic) website (just google it) and read the facts. By “facts” I mean the timeline of events, the casting calls sent out (for lead actors and for extras), the letters of correspondence between professional organizations and Paramount, and other objective material (essay’s on animation techniques, etc.). Ignore any whining and moaning by anti-casters (myself included) and just read the facts. From there, decide if this cause is something you want to support or not.
I don’t think any of the lead actors look like their current roles. Aang comes the closest. But once again, for me, it comes down to race and opportunities for young Asian-American actors. So, even though Aang looks like Aang (to some degree), I am still upset with the choice.
Also, I have yet to see evidence stating that the original creators of the show actually penned the script for the movie. Even if they did, they have already implied that they don’t want to be a part of the film, or associated with it.
Lastly, not a big deal but just an observation anyway, I always imagined the Fire Nation to be the most modern of all the nations in Avatar. They have employed the use of Metalsmithing, steam engines, man-made flying devices, and other such advanced technology. The Earth Kingdom kind of reminds me more of China rather than America. The giant wall kind of does it for me. Also, the uniform of the Dai Lee resembles the ones worn by the Chinese armies in old films (Iron Monkey, Twin Warriors, Seven Swords, etc.). You know, those two things plus all the other Asian references in the show.
June 14th, 2009 at 1:29 pm
What I am upset about is that all the heroes of the story are being portrayed by white characters, but the villains are being portrayed by brown people. What kind of message is that going to portray to our impressionable children?
To me, it seems like the four nation seem to be based off of four real groups. The Airbenders would be tibetan (the philosophy mostly, and the portrayal and outfits of the monks), the Firebenders would be japanese (the haircuts, the uniforms that look EXACTLY like samurai armor, and the country being a volcanic island like japan is), the Earthbenders would be Chinese (the wall of Ba Sing Se=the Great Wall of China) and the Waterbenders would be Eskimo (again, the outfits, and the climate of the country)
Also, another thing that is bugging me is the lack of a topknot in Dev Patel’s costume. Everybody seen in the Fire Nation has a topknot, so what gives?
I accept that white actors would inevitably be in the movie at some point, but they shouldn’t be portraying the Water Tribe, who are the darkest characters. And brown actors just wouldn’t work for the Fire Nation, who are the lightest characters. Something seems a little messed up…
I also agree Lion-Turtle Fan that Noah Ringer looks his part (sort of) but the rest of the actors look NOTHING like the characters they are portraying.
I hope that Shyamalan sees sense and gets the movie a friggin’ recast (not likely) otherwise, the movie will likely fail.
June 26th, 2009 at 8:08 pm
The only thing that matters to me is that they stay true to the original story. The tv show series was so cleverly written with it’s twist and turns in the plot made it so exciting to watch. I’m scard that the movie might not include those major parts that the series has had.
June 29th, 2009 at 9:13 pm
All I have to say is, I TOTALLY agree with you Lion-Turtle Fan.
July 20th, 2009 at 9:57 am
Why should one race-bait and continue to advance a separatist agenda?! Be at peace knowing that this is a friggin’ movie. It won’t be exactly like the original book or cartoon., nor should it If M. Night was to have no artistic exchange or re-invention (if you will) then why make a movie at all? You want all Asian lead actors, write up a script, produce it, call your casts, make a movie! Like Bill, and I hope I’m not putting word into his post, all I would like is to have an enjoyable movie experience, stay true to the major tenants of the story, and for me don’t let the actors “overact” their parts. Does anyone remember SW II: Attack of the Clones? Boy, bad story line and worse acting!! So, If you like the Avatar series, be excited that a movie about one of your favs is coming out and let the pros do their jobs as their inspiration sees fit. All this brown-white-browner-asian-inuit stuff is suffocating the intent of the story: We must all work together, in harmony. Impressing our children is best done in the home. They get that from you regardess if you make it a point to impress upon them of your views.
August 31st, 2009 at 6:20 pm
Motion pictures are another form of art. Crunching a series of plots into one plot is going to have its compromises.
Part of the world of the Avatar: The Last Airbender has been changed because the movie isn’t just for fans, it’s also introduced to audiences who have never even heard of The Last Airbender, and they change things to make them more appealing to other audiences. In Spider-Man’s translation to the big screen, Peter was bitten by a genetically altered spider with a virus that altered Peter’s genes, rather than a radioactive spider like in the comics. Stan Lee said why didn’t I think of that. Changes can be for the better.