Long ago, the four nations (and dragons) lived in harmony. Then, everything changed when an “evil force” attacked. Disney has released the first trailer for Raya and the Last Dragon, a fantasy epic that stars Star Wars’ Kelly Marie Tran as the only person who can save her world — though I don’t imagine it will involve waterbending.
The first trailer for the animated Raya and the Last Dragon shows us a world that was torn asunder after its dragons sacrificed themselves to protect humanity from a mysterious evil. It’s been 500 years since that fateful event on Kumandra and the evil force has returned, so a warrior named Raya (Tran) sets out to find the last remaining dragon, who might be the key to saving everyone. But it won’t be easy.
That’s because in the time between the dragons’ sacrifice and now, humanity has become more divided than ever, splitting into four tribes that don’t seem to have any interest in working together. Why yes, it does sound a lot like Avatar: The Last Airbender — and yes, the fact that Raya is dressed like a waterbender for much of the trailer was incredibly distracting. But I’m excited to see where this story takes us, especially with an actress like Tran leading the way. So far, she and Awkwafina (who plays Sisu the water dragon) are the only voices to have been revealed.
Raya and the Last Dragon — directed by Don Hall and Carlos López Estrada, co-directed by Paul Briggs and John Ripa — is set to come out in theatres March 2021, though the novel coronavirus pandemic could result in delays.