yes its true...did anyone else know this???
"On January 8, 2007, Paramount Pictures' MTV Films and Nickelodeon Movies announced that they have signed M. Night Shyamalan to write, direct and produce a trilogy of live-action films based on the series; the first of these films will encompass the main characters' adventures in Book One.[55] The film was in a dispute with James Cameron's film Avatar regarding title ownership,[56] which resulted in the film being titled The Last Airbender. It is set for release on July 2, 2010.[57] Filming will begin in Philadelphia in May 2009,[58] and it will also be shot in Greenland.[59] Shyamalan was attracted to the spiritual themes in the series.[60]
Avatar co-creators Mike DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko have come forward to voice their opinion within an interview regarding M. Night Shyamalan writing, directing and producing the film. The two displayed much enthusiasm over Shyamalan's decision for the adaptation, stating that they admire his work and, in turn, he respects their material.[61] M. Night Shyamalan has stated that he has already begun to cast the main characters."
"M. Night Shyamalan will direct a live-action adaptation of hit kids' show.
Sixth Sense director M. Night Shyamalan is gearing up to write and direct a big-screen adaptation of the popular Nickelodeon kids' cartoon Avatar: The Last Airbender for Paramount Pictures. Avatar will be the first film Shyamalan directs that is based on characters created by someone else.
Avatar follows the adventures of a gifted 12-year-old boy who is the last hope of a race of beings who can control the elements. The show regularly lands in the top 10 animated programs on TV and is Nickelodeon's top-rated Friday-night show.
Paramount hopes to turn the cartoon into a three-picture film series, according to Variety. Both Paramount and Nickelodeon are owned by Viacom.
Shyamalan was last in theaters with The Lady In the Water, which was based on a kids' story he wrote for his daughter. Lady received withering reviews from critics and grossed $42 million in the US, the director's lowest box office to date.
The film was also reportedly responsible for his break-up with Disney, whose Buena Vista Pictures produced and distributed his previous films Sense, Unbreakable, Signs, and The Village. The tumultouous behind-the-scenes drama was detailed in Michael Bamberger's 2006 book The Man Who Heard Voices: Or, How M. Night Shyamalan Risked His Career on a Fairy Tale.
Coincidentally, this week Terminator and Titanic maestro James Cameron also announced his intention to create a movie named Avatar, this one about a futuristic space war in which soldiers control fighting "avatars" with their minds."
http://www.tv.com/story/8025.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avatar:_The_Last_Airbender
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