Aaron Ehasz

Last updated
Aaron Ehasz
Aaron Ehasz (8220584965) (cropped).jpg
Born
Aaron Gabriel Ehasz

(1973-06-16) June 16, 1973 (age 50)
Education Harvard College
Stanford Graduate School of Business [1]
Occupation(s) Screenwriter, Producer, CEO
Years active2000present
Known for Avatar: The Last Airbender (Head writer and co-executive producer)
The Dragon Prince (Co-creator)
Spouses
  • Melanie McGanney [2]
  • Elizabeth Welch
    (divorced)
RelativesAlex Ehasz

Aaron Gabriel Ehasz (born June 16, 1973) is an American screenwriter and television producer. His body of work primarily consists of animated series, including as head writer and co-executive producer of Avatar: The Last Airbender , although he did serve as a producer on the live-action series The Mullets and Ed . He is also co-founder and CEO of Wonderstorm, and co-creator of the Netflix series The Dragon Prince . He has been involved in the video game industry, having served as creative director at Riot Games.

Contents

Career

Ehasz began his writing career in the year 2000, working as a staff writer on Ed and on Mission Hill . In 2001 he took a position as story editor on Matt Groening's animated Fox series Futurama , where he worked until its cancellation in 2003. From 2005 until 2008 he served as a co-executive producer and head writer for the acclaimed Nickelodeon series Avatar: The Last Airbender. When Futurama was revived by Comedy Central in 2009, he returned to the writing staff. In the same year he also wrote an episode of the American version of Sit Down, Shut Up . [3]

In 2017, Ehasz co-founded the multimedia studio "Wonderstorm" with video game director Justin Richmond ( Uncharted ). The studio's first work, the animated fantasy adventure series The Dragon Prince , was released on Netflix on September 14, 2018. [4]

The Dragon Prince garnered a reputation as "the best new Netflix show of 2018," according to Hypable writer Donya Abramo. [5] The Mary Sue writer Caroline Cao hailed the "strong heroines" of the Dragon Prince, writing "[a]mong the show’s best assets are three multi-dimensional heroines who kick ass, have organic moments of weakness, and honestly, deserve a tribute." Notably, General Amaya, who is "a major step forward in portraying a deaf person as a badass military leader." [6]

Mission Hill episodes

  • "Unemployment: Part 2" (1.09)
  • "Pretty in Pink" (1.16) [Un-Produced]

Ed episodes

  • "Business as Usual" (3.18)

Futurama episodes

Avatar: The Last Airbender episodes

While he is the head writer and plays a significant role in every episode of the series, his solo credits include:

  • "Winter Solstice, Part 1: The Spirit World" (1.07)
  • "The Storm" (1.12)
  • "The Fortuneteller" (with John O'Bryan) (1.14)
  • "The Siege of the North, Part 2" (1.20)
  • "The Avatar State" (with Elizabeth Welch Ehasz, Tim Hedrick and John O'Bryan) (2.01)
  • "Bitter Work" (2.09)
  • "The Crossroads of Destiny" (2.20)
  • "The Awakening" (3.01)
  • "The Day of Black Sun, Part 2: The Eclipse" (3.11)
  • "Sozin's Comet, Part 2: The Old Masters" (3.19)

The Dragon Prince episodes

  • "Echoes of Thunder" (with Justin Richmond) (1.01)
  • "What Is Done" (with Justin Richmond) (1.02)
  • "Moonrise" (with Justin Richmond) (1.03)
  • "An Empty Throne" (with Justin Richmond) (1.05)
  • "Through the Ice" (with Justin Richmond) (1.06)
  • "Cursed Caldera" (with Justin Richmond) (1.08)
  • "Wonderstorm" (with Justin Richmond) (1.09)
  • "A Secret and a Spark" (with Justin Richmond) (2.01)
  • "Half Moon Lies" (with Justin Richmond) (2.02)
  • "Breaking the Seal" (with Justin Richmond) (2.05)
  • "Heart of a Titan" (with Justin Richmond) (2.06)
  • "The Book of Destiny" (with Justin Richmond) (2.08)
  • "Breathe" (with Justin Richmond) (2.09)
  • "Sol Regem" (with Justin Richmond) (3.01)
  • "The Midnight Desert" (with Justin Richmond) (3.04)
  • "Heroes and Masterminds" (with Justin Richmond) (3.05)
  • "Thunderfall" (with Justin Richmond) (3.06)
  • "The Final Battle" (with Justin Richmond) (3.09)
  • "Rebirthday" (with Justin Richmond) (4.01)
  • "Fallen Stars" (with Justin Richmond) (4.02)
  • "Breathtaking" (with Justin Richmond) (4.03)
  • "Through the Looking Glass" (with Justin Richmond) (4.04)
  • "Beneath the Surface" (with Justin Richmond) (4.07)
  • "Escape from Umber Tor" (with Justin Richmond) (4.09)

Awards and nominations

In 2007 he was nominated for the Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming Less Than One Hour) Emmy award for his work on the second season of Avatar: The Last Airbender. [8]

In 2008 he won a Peabody Award for his work as head writer and co-executive producer of Avatar: the Last Airbender. [9] [10]

In 2020 The Dragon Prince won the Daytime Emmy Award in Children's Animated Series. [11]

Controversy

According to CBR writer Meagan Damore, in November 2019, a female former employee of Ehasz who never worked at Wonderstorm, alleged "he would bring his children to work and leave them with female production staff members without asking", treating her "like his own personal assistant (..) transitioning her editorial duties to a group and shut down her ideas." [12] Freelance writer Samantha Nelson in November 2019 reported that several women claimed "Ehasz had created an abusive environment for women (..) ignored, belittled, and gaslit his female employees". [13]

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References

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  4. Robinson, Tasha (10 July 2018). "Avatar: The Last Airbender's head writer has a new Netflix series". The Verge. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
  5. "'The Dragon Prince' is the best new Netflix show of 2018". Hypable. 2018-09-07. Retrieved 2022-07-01.
  6. "3 Strong, Vulnerable Heroines of Netflix's The Dragon Prince". The Mary Sue. 2018-09-27. Retrieved 2022-07-01.
  7. TheGeekEvan (July 25, 2010). "Comic Con 2010 Futurama Panel Table Read". YouTube. Retrieved May 3, 2011.
  8. "The 59th Primetime Emmy® Awards and Creative Arts Emmy® Awards Nominees are..." Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Archived from the original on 17 June 2011. Retrieved May 3, 2011.
  9. "Aaron Ehasz". www.fantasticfiction.com. Retrieved 2022-07-01.
  10. looklisten. "Avatar: The Last Airbender". The Peabody Awards. Retrieved 2022-07-01.
  11. "The Dragon Prince Wins Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Children's Animated Series". Anime. Retrieved 2022-06-23.
  12. Damore, Meagan (6 November 2019). "Avatar: The Last Airbender Head Writer Accused of Misogynistic Behavior". CBR . Retrieved 10 November 2019.
  13. Nelson, Samantha (19 November 2019). "Dragon Prince's heroes are fighting the same battles as the fans". Polygon . Retrieved 24 November 2019.