Paramount Gives ‘Avatar’ A Token Two-Theater Release Before Its Paramount+ Debut

Paramount is giving Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender a token theatrical release after all, but only for audiences in New York and L.A.

According to Variety, the animated feature will screen for one week, from July 24-30, at just two locations — AMC Burbank Town Center 6 in Los Angeles and AMC Empire 25 in New York — with three showings per day before making its scheduled Paramount+ debut on July 25. The limited engagement is meant to qualify the film for award consideration, not to benefit fans or the artists who worked on it and may want to see it on the big screen.

The move marks a small concession following a campaign to restore the film to its originally planned theatrical release, after Paramount scrapped the film’s worldwide rollout in favor of a streaming-native plan. That campaign intensified after a copy of the completed film was leaked online in April, prompting many fans and members of the production to argue that the project deserved a proper big-screen release after all. Instead, Paramount simply moved the film’s streaming debut date up and released a trailer.

As we previously reported, Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender is the first feature from Avatar Studios and follows an adult Aang alongside Katara, Sokka, Toph, and Zuko on a new adventure set years after the original Nickelodeon series. Lauren Montgomery directs, with Dave Bautista, Steven Yeun, Jessica Matten, Román Zaragoza, Dionne Quan, and Dee Bradley Baker rounding out the principal voice cast.

The qualifying run is unlikely to satisfy fans who hoped Paramount would restore the film’s original theatrical ambitions, but a few die-hards in Los Angeles and New York will have at least one opportunity to see Avatar Studios’ debut feature on the big screen.