---
title: "Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender"
year: 2026
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/avatar-aang-the-last-airbender"
fi1m_id: "avatar-aang-the-last-airbender"
imdb_id: "tt18259538"
tmdb_id: 980431
wikidata_id: "Q125447555"
fi1m_score: 64
critics_score: 68
critics_reviews: 10
published: "2026-09-23T14:00:52.589833+00:00"
updated: "2026-09-23T14:01:28.724742+00:00"
region: "CH"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender (2026)

Directed by Lauren Montgomery · 1h 39m · Animation, Adventure, Fantasy, Action

## Identity

Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/avatar-aang-the-last-airbender
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** avatar-aang-the-last-airbender
- **IMDb ID:** tt18259538
- **TMDB ID:** 980431
- **Wikidata ID:** Q125447555
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18259538/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/980431, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q125447555

**Fi1m score: 64** · Critics 68 from 10 reviews

*In a sentence:* Ninety-nine minutes of fine bending wrapped round about twenty of story

> Lauren Montgomery brings Aang and his friends back as adults, and the drawing and the fights are as good as the series ever managed. The story underneath is thin and in a hurry, and it saves its best scenes for people who love these characters.

## Synopsis

The Hundred Year War is over and Aang (Eric Nam), the Avatar and the last Airbender, is a grown man, still the only one of his people alive. He wants to rebuild the culture the Fire Nation wiped out. A stranger named Tagah (Dave Bautista) has his own claim on the Avatar’s legacy, and it does not match Aang’s. Katara (Jessica Matten), Sokka (Román Zaragoza), Zuko (Steven Yeun) and Toph (Dionne Quan), all older now, gather round him again, with the sky bison Appa and the lemur Momo (both Dee Bradley Baker) in tow. Along the way Aang seeks the counsel of two past Avatars, Sonam (Freida Pinto) and Xian (Ke Huy Quan), and meets a creature called Gorillavark (Taika Waititi).

## Review

The animated series *Avatar: The Last Airbender* ended in 2008, and this is the first time its characters have been back on screen in the form their audience remembers, drawn rather than acted. Lauren Montgomery, who directed episodes of the original, takes Aang (Eric Nam) into adulthood and gives him a new opponent in Tagah (Dave Bautista), a man built as a dark reflection of the Avatar himself. The idea underneath is a good one: what does the last of a people owe to that people, and what does he do about the ones who wiped them out. The film is 99 minutes long and beautifully drawn, and it gets to about half of that idea.

The voices are new, and it takes ten minutes to stop hearing that. Nam plays Aang as a grown man who has not lost the boy’s lightness, and it works; the character has always been lighter than the world he lives in. Steven Yeun’s Zuko is steady and a little tired, which suits him. Jessica Matten’s Katara, Román Zaragoza’s Sokka and Dionne Quan’s Toph are all fine, and all of them are given far less to do than their billing suggests. Sokka in particular is here to be Sokka, briefly, and then to stand at the edge of the frame. Dee Bradley Baker, who made Appa’s noises in the original, makes them again, and the bison remains the most reliable emotional instrument this world owns.

Where the film earns its keep is in motion. The animation is 2D with some 3D under it, and Damon O’Beirne’s camera moves through the fights rather than watching them from the side, so a gust of air or a wall of earth has weight and direction. Jake Panian’s design keeps the Four Nations recognisable and lets them age along with the people, which is the right call. We felt a proper lift the first time Aang bends at full stretch as an adult, a jolt of pleasure at seeing something we had known as a children’s serial given this much room. That feeling recurs in every action sequence and in almost nothing else.

The screenplay, by Tim Hedrick and Christopher Lee Yost from a story credited to Bryan Konietzko, Kenneth Lin, Michael Dante DiMartino and Hedrick, wants to talk about genocide and the cycle of violence, and it is not shy about saying so. It is shy about staying on the subject. Tagah is introduced, his grievance is stated, and then the film leaves for the spirit world, where the past Avatars Sonam (Freida Pinto) and Xian (Ke Huy Quan) offer counsel and a creature called Gorillavark (Taika Waititi) offers jokes. The detour is pleasant and it costs the film its middle. By the time we are back with Tagah there are perhaps thirty minutes left, and the argument the film promised has become a fight.

Michelle Mendenhall cuts it fast, which is fine in the fights and a fault in the talk; several scenes end a line before they have finished. Jeremy Zuckerman scored the original series and knows exactly what this world sounds like, and his cues do a good deal of the emotional work the writing leaves undone. There were moments where we noticed the score asking us to feel something the scene had not yet earned, and we resented it slightly, and then the picture moved again and we forgave it.

Against the standard of the series, which took three seasons and gave every member of its cast a reason to be there, this has about one episode’s story in it. Most critics have landed a little warmer than we have, and we understand why: the film is generous to people who loved the show, and there are a great many of them. It is less generous to anyone else. A newcomer will follow the plot and miss most of what makes its fans go quiet.

Watch it anyway, if you knew these people as children, and sit close. If you did not, start with the series, which does everything this film does and takes the time to mean it.

*Fi1m score 64, published 23 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics like it, and the praise clusters almost entirely in one place: the animation. Nearly every review calls the hand-drawn work fluid and handsome and singles out the action sequences as the best-staged thing in the film. Several also welcome the novelty of seeing the characters older, and a few credit the film with taking Aang’s grief for his lost people seriously. Six of the ten reviews are positive and none is negative, and the fans it was made for are, by most accounts, well served.

The reservations cluster just as neatly on the story. The mixed reviews call it serviceable at best, rushed and inconsequential, doing little to move the characters or the world forward and offering thin footing to anyone who does not know the series. The spread is fairly wide. Polygon is the outlier at the top, calling it the worthy follow-up fans have waited for; IndieWire is the outlier at the bottom, finding it emotionally inert beneath the pretty surfaces.

## Straight answers

**Is Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender worth watching?**

*Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender* is worth watching if you grew up with the series, and we scored it 64. The drawing and the fights are as good as the show ever managed, but the story is thin and hurried, with about one episode's worth spread over 99 minutes. Newcomers should start with the series instead.

**How long is Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender, and what is it rated?**

*Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender* runs 1h 39m. It is an animation and adventure film.

**Where can I watch Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender in Switzerland?**

*Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender* is streaming on Paramount+ and Apple TV in Switzerland, and it is also available to buy from Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV from CHF 16.00. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How does Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender compare to Batman: Mask of the Phantasm?**

*Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender* is the handsomer film in motion, but [*Batman: Mask of the Phantasm*](https://film.one/film/batman-mask-of-the-phantasm) is the better one, because it tells a complete story in 76 minutes and gives its lead a reason to be there. Montgomery's film wins on animation and fights; the Batman film wins on writing, and it works for people who do not know the programme. Aang's return does not.

**What should I watch after Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender?**

After *Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender*, try [*Batman: Mask of the Phantasm*](https://film.one/film/batman-mask-of-the-phantasm) (1993, Fi1m 82): The model for turning a television cartoon into a feature without losing its nerve. Then [*Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind*](https://film.one/film/warriors-of-the-wind) (1984, Fi1m 85): Miyazaki’s flying girl and poisoned world; the film this one’s landscapes remember.

### Reviews we read (10)

- **Total Film**, David Opie (79/100, inferred): The review presents the film as a positive animated take that will appeal to and unify fans frustrated by prior live-action versions. It singles out its ability to deliver harmony to a divided fandom as the key strength. [Read](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/animation-movies/avatar-aang-the-last-airbender-review/)
- **RogerEbert.com**, Rendy Jones (78/100, inferred): The critic praises the film as a visually stunning 2D animated feature that expands on Aang's existential struggles as the last Airbender and delivers a gratifying cinematic experience for fans. They single out the breathtaking animation, fluid action sequences, and emotional depth for praise while complaining that Paramount dumped it primarily on streaming instead of a wide theatrical release. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/avatar-aang-the-last-airbender-paramount-movie-review-2026)
- **The Guardian** (77/100, inferred): The critic finds the film an engaging TV-to-movie adventure that provides enough for both fans and newcomers, with strong animation and well-staged action sequences. They single out the refreshing novelty of revisiting the aged-up characters and the theater-worthy animation as highlights, while noting the story is good-enough but the focus on a new character arc may leave some fans wanting more. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2026/jul/22/avatar-aang-the-last-airbender-review-paramount)
- **The AV Club**, Joshua Rivera (C): The critic sees it as a gorgeous but empty reunion special that is a pleasant hang for fans with great action, yet inconsequential as a story that does nothing to advance the characters or world. It feels like a serviceable but ultimately tragic, barely-there film after its troubled release path. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/avatar-aang-the-last-airbender-review)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Frank Scheck (56/100, inferred): The critic finds the film delivers impressive action sequences and dazzling 2D/3D animation but lacks strong plotting, characterizations, and the complexity of the original series. It is visually dazzling yet rushed and hyper-kinetic, feeling more like spectacle than a sophisticated story. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/avatar-aang-the-last-airbender-review-1236651085/)
- **IndieWire**, Wilson Chapman (49/100, inferred): The film is visually stunning and captures the beauty of the world but is emotionally inert and mediocre, failing to capture the spirit or depth of the original series despite following the adult characters on a new adventure. [Read](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/avatar-aang-the-last-airbender-movie-review-1235206149/)
- **Polygon**, Sam Nelson (85/100, inferred): The movie finally delivers the worthy follow-up fans have been waiting for, with director Lauren Montgomery recapturing the original series' magic by blending it with Superman-style storytelling to give Aang a compelling new challenge against a dark-mirror antagonist. Its only notable flaw is occasional over-reliance on fan service and a spirit-realm detour that disrupts the balance between charm and heavier themes, but it is a must-watch for fans that could launch new adult-focused stories. [Read](https://www.polygon.com/avatar-aang-last-airbender-review/)
- **The Wrap** (77/100, inferred): The critic calls the film a noble and largely successful endeavor that admirably reckons with genocide and the cycle of violence, though it is rushed and undercooked for non-fans. They single out the stunning, fluid animation and elaborate action sequences for praise. [Read](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/avatar-aang-the-last-airbender-review/)
- **Collider**, Aidan Kelley (7/10): The film is visually stunning with breathtaking hand-drawn animation and action sequences that make it one of the most beautiful animated movies of the year, but the narrative is serviceable at best and does not add much to the established world or give supporting Team Avatar members enough to do. It is a must-see for fans on the big screen but feels more like a legacy sequel made primarily for devotees than newcomers. [Read](https://collider.com/avatar-aang-the-last-airbender-review-paramount-plus/)
- **Den of Geek**, Joe George (57/100, inferred): The critic finds the decision to skip theaters for the Paramount+ release disrespectful to fans and insulting to cinema lovers, as it prioritizes streaming over the theatrical experience despite the film's apparent visual strengths. They single out the trailer's gorgeous character moments, dazzling action, and the plot's potential for reviving Aang's lost culture as highlights of what could have been a strong feature adaptation. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/avatar-aang-trailer-paramount-theatrical-dodge/)

## Details

- **Director:** Lauren Montgomery
- **Director:** Lauren Montgomery
- **Screenplay:** Tim Hedrick, Christopher Lee Yost
- **Story:** Bryan Konietzko, Michael Dante DiMartino, Tim Hedrick, Kenneth Lin
- **Cinematography:** Damon O'Beirne
- **Editor:** Michelle Mendenhall
- **Music:** Jeremy Zuckerman
- **Production design:** Jake Panian
- **Producer:** Latifa Ouaou, Maryann Garger, Dagan Potter
- **Cast:** Eric Nam as Aang (voice); Dave Bautista as Tagah (voice); Jessica Matten as Katara (voice); Román Zaragoza as Sokka (voice); Steven Yeun as Zuko (voice); Dionne Quan as Toph (voice); Dee Bradley Baker as Appa / Momo (voice); Freida Pinto as Avatar Sonam (voice)
- **Runtime:** 1h 39m
- **First release (the US):** 24 July 2026
- **Genres:** Animation, Adventure, Fantasy, Action
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7b20GRFZBFE

## Where to watch in Switzerland

- Paramount+: streaming, hd
- Apple TV: add-on, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy CHF 16.00, uhd
- Apple TV: buy CHF 16.00, hd

*Checked 2026-09-23.*

Also available in: AR, AT, AU, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, ES, FI, FR, GB, HR, HU, IE, IN, IT, MX, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, SK, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *Avatar: The Last Airbender* (2005): The series this film assumes you have seen; it earns every feeling this one borrows.
- *The Legend of Korra* (2012): The same world a generation on, with a lead who is allowed to be wrong.
- *Batman: Mask of the Phantasm* (1993), Fi1m 82: The model for turning a television cartoon into a feature without losing its nerve. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/batman-mask-of-the-phantasm.md)
- *Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind* (1984), Fi1m 85: Miyazaki’s flying girl and poisoned world; the film this one’s landscapes remember. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/warriors-of-the-wind.md)
- *Wolfwalkers* (2020): Irish hand-drawn animation with a story that trusts children to sit with grief.

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/avatar-aang-the-last-airbender