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Shyamalan’s The Last Airbender Trailer Delayed

Published by Jeff Leins on: December 4th, 2009

The Last AirbenderA quick update on M. Night Shyamalan’s next film, The Last Airbender.  A full-length theater trailer was expected to play sometime this holiday season in preparation for its July 2010 bow, but producer Frank Marshall says it will be delayed.

In a Tweet on Thursday, Marshall said “Not enough ILM [Industrial Light & Magic, the effects company] shots finished, so LAST AIRBENDER trailer will not debut until Feb…”

This means the trailer will probably be attached to prints of Fox’s Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief on February 12.  You can watch the teaser trailer here, in case you missed it.

For fans of the animated television series eagerly awaiting the live-action version, Variety did a short piece on Noah Ringer, the 12-year-old actor who portrays Aang.  Shyamalan reportedly searched for a year to find the right person before choosing Ringer from a martial arts demonstration video he sent from Dallas.  The pre-teen has a black belt in tae kwon do, a proficiency with “various Eastern” weapons, a physical resemblance to the character, and a “gentleness” that Shyamalan felt was important for the role.

As much as I like to rag on Shyamalan’s declining quality, he does have a knack for making the careers of young talent.  Haley Joel Osment, Abigail Breslin, and Bryce Dallas Howard (she was 23, but still) all got their big breaks in his films.

  • mattmchugh
    I loved Nickelodeon's "Avatar" (I'm in my 40's), and was actually quite pleased when I heard Shyamalan was attached to the film. I agree he's been in a slump, but he's still an excellent director who handles suspense and emotional subtlety as well as anyone working today. I think he's become a victim of his own "Big Twist" hype and his talent's been obscured by early success and the evitable backlash from the fickle public.

    I think some good outside material is just what he needs to get him back on creative track. I wish him well with "Airbender" (and dearly hope he dosesn't screw it up!)

    -- mm
  • jeffleins
    Matt, you make a good point about him being good at directing suspense, but his latest films have been terrible. The Happening was nominated for one of the worst films of 2008 (I believe it should have won, or lost is it?). It's not just the twist element.

    Outside material means he can just condense and redo what the Airbender writers created that fans adore. The creators have been working with him to make sure he doesn't screw it up, and I too hope he doesn't, but his track record of late doesn't inspire confidence.

    I really need to see this show though.
  • mattmchugh
    I have actually seen neither "The Lady in Water" nor "The Happening" so I can't argue against the consensus that they were terrible. But, despite some admitted deficiencies, I quite enjoyed aspects of "Unbreakable," "Signs," and "The Village."

    I think of how he knits together suspense and emotion to create some truly memorable scenes. The son in "Unbreakable" trying to prove his father's invulnerability by threatening to shoot him. The father in "Signs" regaining his faith when his son's asthma saves him from breathing poison. The blind girl in "The Village" holding out her hand in the dark because she utterly believes her boyfriend will return before the monsters can get in. That's good stuff.

    Yes, he sets up those scenes with an enormous amount of contrivance that can be almost laughable (Water is an invincible man's "weakness"? Aliens allergic to water invade a 70% aquatic planet?? People terrified of the world dress in costumes to impart fear to the kids?!?) -- but he entertains and interests me enough along the way to make me forgive that. Maybe that doesn't work for everyone.

    As for the Nickelodeon cartoon, if you ain't seen it, give it a try. Netflix yourself the Season 1 DVDs and watch a few episodes (episode #3 is particularly good, if I recall). If it grabs you, it grabs you. If not, skip it.

    -- mm
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