Avatar Aang Last Airbender Movie: As Animator responds to leak, what are Reddit users saying?
An animator on the Avatar Aang Last Airbender Movie has responded to the movie being leaked.
Five weeks ago, Lauren Montgomery, the director of The Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender took to Instagram and wrote: “Aang movie is officially wrapped. We screened the final film for the crew and celebrated the end of a 4 year journey.
“Now it waits in limbo until its release in October. I’ve never worked on an Avatar project that was easy and this was no different. But it was worth it. I’m so proud of everyone who was a part of this and the amazing thing we built together.
“The movie is amazing!!! That might not mean much coming from the director. I might have some bias, but I feel the need to put that out there.
“The recent decision to move us from theatrical to streaming might give the impression that the quality wasn’t sufficient, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. This movie deserves to be seen on a big screen!!! Can’t wait for you all to see it!
“Also, I’m terrible at taking pictures, but I managed to remember to take a few over the course of the night.”
In response, a fan wrote: “Nope they were right, streaming it would have been better because maybe they saw it for what it was - a cash grab with no story to hold it up. Can't believe that someone with DC comics experience doesn't understand the value of good story telling and voice acting.
“This is not a hate comment because I'm trying not to let my anger get the best of me but I would advise that you prepare yourself for the brunt of the criticism in the weeks and months to follow.”
Julia Schoel, an animator on X has taken to X to respond to the movie being leaked and wrote: “We worked on the aang movie for years with the expectation that’d we’d get to celebrate all of our hard work in theaters.. just to see people unceremoniously leak the film and pass our shots around on twitter like candy.. (1/3)
The Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender was due to be released by Paramount Pictures on October 10, 2025, was then delayed again until January 30, 2026 and is now expected to be streamed on Paramount+ on October 9, 2026. Reddit users have been sharing their reaction to and one wrote: “Overall, I'd say I enjoyed it. But I think I enjoyed it the way I enjoy any decent movie in the streaming era, rather than the way I enjoy peak Avatar content, which is one of the most meaningful properties for me.
“Sure, there were a couple of moments that did get my heart pumping or bring back the old feels, here or there, but not many. The soundtrack is still delightful, of course, and the animation is absolutely beautiful, which helps. But I felt like the movie is lacking in heart, a little bit, and the soulful spirituality that made ATLA great.
Pros- Great animation, Aang has a pretty decent arc, the villain is cool even if he's very similar to Zaheer. Cons- The gaang don't do much, the movie being short makes the pacing and some development very quick. The story isn't anything special but it's decent.
I honestly would've understood moving this to streaming if it were bad, but this is nowhere near as bad as some of the other things they've released.