MUMBAI: Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies have greenlit the live-action epic adventure, M. Night Shyamalan’s The Last Airbender, which will launch over the Independence Day weekend in 2010, opening on 2 July, 2010.

Shyamalan will direct and produce the epic action-adventure based on a script that he penned. "I was drawn to the series because of its influences. One being Hayao Miyazaki", said Shyamalan.

"I have always been a huge fan of Miyazaki’s work. He is one of the greatest storytellers in the world and makes anime films in Japan. His combination of spirituality and super natural elements have brought depth and meaning to his art form. In The Last Airbender, I see an opportunity to make a live-action version of a Miyazaki film."

"We’re delighted to be partnering with Nickelodeon to bring M. Night Shyamalan’s vision of The Last Airbender to the big screen and to audiences of all ages," said Paramount Film Group president John Lesher.

"M. Night Shyamalan’s exciting vision for a film with the potential of The Last Airbender is another perfect fit for the Fourth of July holiday weekend that we have used to launch such blockbusters as War of the Worlds and Transformers," said Paramount Pictures vice chairman Rob Moore.

The Last Airbender promises to be a summer movie that combines the imagination and visual canvas of the Lord of the Rings saga with the action and spectacle of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.