A high-quality version of the highly anticipated “Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender” movie, was leaked on April 13 on X and spread rapidly onto various social media platforms, deterring Avatar Studios original plan to release the movie on Paramount+ on Oct. 9. A high-quality version of the complete film was showcased to the entire world through social media instead of on Oct. 9 on Paramount+ as planned.
With around two weeks of circulation, the film has reached a wide audience, including the Oak Park High School community. Reactions to the leak are mixed: while many are excited to see new Avatar content for the first time in over a decade, others express guilt, acknowledging the impact this leak has on the animation team.
“I’m really sad for everybody who worked on it; the artists, the actors, the producers and the directors,” senior Kaela Raquel said. “It was a labor of love for them, and something coming out like this is something we won’t get a lot. I’m a little worried this leak might be preventing us from getting more Avatar lore and concepts in the future.”
Due to the prominence of the leaks, fans are worried the money lost will serve as a deterrent for future films.
“I’m worried they’ll (Paramount+) see something like this as a signal to not fund further projects,” physics teacher Austin Lippincott said. “In general, if the project does not take in money, then that means that in the future, they’re not going to give funds to any further development in the Avatar universe, which is bad. It’s also bad because of all the artists and people who put all this time into it. It’s a very anticlimactic way to see their work come to fruition.”
Despite the controversy surrounding the leaks, viewers have recognized the films as a spectacular achievement.
“It’s really good, which makes it even more sad because it was so good and it deserves a theatrical release,” Raquel said. “Everybody looks good. The style grew up with the show, and it’s great to see Avatar as a show, and as a concept, evolving throughout the years. On Letterboxd, I rated it five out of five.”
In wake of the leak, some students have begun forming conspiracy theories as to why and how the movie surfaced onto their “For You” pages.
“I heard somewhere that Paramount leaked it on purpose so they don’t need to have the responsibility of making the rest of the movies they promised to the fans,” junior Aditi Jain said. “That may not be true.”
Regardless, authorities in Singapore have arrested the alleged leaker. The suspect could be facing up to seven years in prison for allegedly illegally accessing computer material. As movie leaks become increasingly common in this digital age, students are beginning to question the role of streaming in the film industry.
“I didn’t like their decision that they’re only releasing [the movie] on Paramount+,” Jain said. “I think that restricts the amount of fans that are able to view their movie they have worked on for years and that we have been waiting for so long. I’m not going to buy Paramount+ to watch one amazing movie.”
Even though the movie can not solely entice customers to purchase Paramount Plus, the fandom is ready to watch the movies in theater if it is ever released or through a DVD.
“I guess part of me was hoping that maybe it would come out for a theater and that would be a really fun experience, but if that’s not gonna happen I just don’t see myself subscribing to Paramount Plus just for this,” Lippincott said. “Besides that, I think if I see it, like, at Walmart or Target on the shelves, like a DVD for like 20 bucks, I would definitely buy that. I would definitely buy that and watch it and support it that way.”
As of now, the animated film is still set to premiere exclusively on Paramount+ on Oct. 9.
