News from SDCC 2025: First Look at “Avatar: Seven Havens”

Nickelodeon celebrated the 20th anniversary of its iconic Avatar: The Last Airbender with an unforgettable panel at San Diego Comic-Con yesterday. Held in Ballroom 20, more than 4000 fans got surprises and sneak peeks about the future of the Avatar universe.

Moderated by Janet Varney (Avatar Korra herself), the panel featured an almost complete reunion of the original Gaang. Zach Tyler Eisen (Aang), Jack De Sena (Sokka), Michaela Jill Murphy (Toph), Jennie Kwan (Suki), Dante Basco (Zuko), and Dee Bradley Baker (Appa) were joined by series composer Jeremy Zuckerman and creators Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino for a deep-dive into the beloved franchise’s 20-year legacy.

While Mae Whitman (Katara) wasn’t able to attend in person, she did prepare a heartfelt video message, where she reflected on growing up with the series and talked about her excitement in getting to share it with her own child one day. She also expressed her gratitude for being a part of the show’s 20th anniversary celebration, albeit in spirit and not in person.

Along with Whitman’s video, there was a tribute video honoring 20 years of Avatar and its fandom, following the show’s journey from the pilot’s debut at SDCC and chronicling the show’s rise into the cultural phenomenon that it is today. Thanks to streaming services like Netflix, the show is constantly attracting new fans. (I only started watching it in 2018, when it was included with Amazon Prime, and a friend of mine saw it for the first time when it came to Netflix a few years ago.)

Varney took advantage of having almost the entire main voice cast present by having the panelists do table reads of her favorite ATLA episodes: “The Serpent’s Pass / Appa’s Lost Days,” “The Western Air Temple” and “Sozin’s Comet, Part 4: Avatar Aang”. (Party foul! “The Tales of Ba Sing Se” is not on the list.)

There was also a show-stopping sing-a-long of “Secret Tunnel”, led by Zuckerman and backed by a video montage featuring scenes from various ATLA episodes and animated visuals.

But perhaps the biggest news out of the panel, and what I’m most excited about, is the image at the top of this article. It’s the first image from the upcoming 2D-animated series from Avatar Studios, Avatar: Seven Havens. The series will follow young Earthbender Aurora as she discovers that she’s the next Avatar.

Over the course of seven seasons (three of ATLA and four of Avatar: The Legend of Korra), I feel like we’ve seen a lot of Earthbender culture. But I’m sure we haven’t seen everything, and so I’m excited to see what more we’ll learn in Avatar: Seven Havens. I’m also intrigued by the fact that Aurora is disabled. I don’t know how many kids’ shows feature a disabled protagonist, let alone one who is the chosen hero of the world.

If you’re at SDCC this weekend, the celebration doesn’t stop there. Make sure you stop by the Nickelodeon booth (#4113) on the show floor, where you can experience immersive activations, photo ops, and interactive booth activities. And head over to the Petco Park Interactive Zone where the Magic: The Gathering x Avatar activation will have photo ops and giveaways. More about the booth and outdoor activation activities can be found here.

Stay tuned for more of our coverage from SDCC 2025. And don’t forget to follow us on Tiktok, Instagram, and Bluesky!

Author: Jamie Sugah

Jamie has a BA in English with a focus in creative writing from The Ohio State University. She self-published her first novel, The Perils of Long Hair on a Windy Day, which is available through Amazon. She is currently an archivist and lives in New York City with her demon ninja vampire cat. She covers television, books, movies, anime, and conventions in the NYC area.

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