Ethan Spaulding

Animation, where he served as a producer of the animated reboot series ThunderCats (2011–2012). He has since directed films from the Scooby Doo!, Mortal Kombat, and DC Comics franchises, among others.

• Name — Ethan Spaulding • Birth Name — Ethan Spaulding • Birthplace — United States • Occupation — * Animation director • producer • story board artist • Years Active — 1995–present • Employer — Warner Bros. Animation • Notable Works — Avatar: The Last Airbender ThunderCats Son of Batman Batman: Assault on Arkham Justice League: Throne of Atlantis

Spaulding spent a decade as a character layout artist on The Simpsons, starting in 1995. Following his work on the show, he was hired as a storyboard artist on the Nickelodeon animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender. He made his directorial debut with the season 2 episode “Return to Omashu”. In 2011, Spaulding served as a producer for the Cartoon Network series ThunderCats, a reboot of the 1980s TV series of the same name. He directed three films in the DC Animated Movie Universe: Son of Batman and Batman: Assault on Arkham, both in 2014 (the latter of which he co-directed with Jay Oliva), and Justice League: Throne Of Atlantis in 2015. From 2017 to 2018, he directed the CW Seed web series Freedom Fighters: The Ray, which was later released as a feature film. He also directed the Lego films Lego Scooby-Doo! Blowout Beach Bash and Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: The Flash. In 2019, he co-directed the film Scooby-Doo! Return to Zombie Island alongside Cecilia Aranovich Hamilton. Since 2020, Spaulding has directed three animated films based on the Mortal Kombat franchise: Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge, Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms, and Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match. He also produced the anime-inspired film Catwoman: Hunted in 2022. In 2025, it was announced that Spaulding would executive produce the upcoming Avatar sequel series Avatar: Seven Havens.

• Year — Title — Director — Story Artist — Producer — Notes • 1995–2004 — The Simpsons — Assistant — Assistant Director: 12 episodes Character layout artist: 27 episodes • 2005–2008 — Avatar: The Last Airbender — Director: 12 episodes Assistant Director: 3 episodes Storyboard artist: 20 episodes • 2008–2009 — Batman: The Brave and the Bold — 8 episodes • 2011–2012 — ThunderCats — 26 episodes • 2013 — The Looney Tunes Show — 7 episodes • Green Lantern: The Animated Series — Episode: "Love Is a Battlefield" • The Legend of Korra — Episodes: "The Sting" and "Light in the Dark" • 2014–2016 — Mike Tyson Mysteries — Director: 15 episodes Storyboard artist: 2 episodes • 2017–2018 — Justice League Action — 3 episodes • 2017 — Justice League Action Shorts — Episode: "True Colors" • 2017–2018 — Freedom Fighters: The Ray • 2027 — Avatar: Seven Havens — Executive