Paramount Pictures has released the first photos from M Night Shyamalan’s The Last Airbender in Friday’s issue of USA Today.

The image you see above features Dev Patel (Slumdog Millionaire) playing the villain, Zuko, a “Firebender” who can manipulate flames and the image below is of Noah Ringer, a 12-year-old playing Aang, an Avatar who can manipulate weather, Noah usually shaves his head to keep him cool for Tae Kwon Do & didn’t need a lot of manipulation to get into the part as he is also an expert in martial arts.

The Last Airbender is the first film in a planned trilogy revolving around Aang, a young hero who has the ability to manipulate the elements and stop a ruthless nation from destroying the three other nations.

The film will be released by Paramount Pictures and has a July 2, 2010 release date. Along with Ringer and Patel, the film features Nicola Peltz, Jackson Rathbone and Jessica Jade Andres and is directed by M. Night Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense).