Avatar: The Last Airbender is the perfect example of what happens when a show contains powerful storytelling, well-written characters (let’s not forget about their ongoing development throughout the show as well!) and imaginative world-building.
It’s why it’s captured so many fans around the world, who have fallen in love with this incredible series — and have eagerly anticipated the arrival of Netflix’s live-action adaptation, which has been in the works since 2018.
A reimagined, live-action “Avatar: The Last Airbender” series is coming to Netflix!
(ᴄᴏɴᴄᴇᴘᴛ ᴀʀᴛ ʙʏ Jᴏʜɴ Sᴛᴀᴜʙ)
Twitter: @netflixqueue
To start off, we have Aang — an airbender who discovers he’s the avatar and has to battle with this heavy burden throughout the series. He will be played by Gordon Cormier.
Next up is Katara — a fearless and determined waterbender, who doubles up as the motherly figure for Team Avatar. She will be played by Kiawentiio.
Alongside Katara, we have her brother, Sokka — who provides comic relief and is everyone’s favourite character (but he can also kick butt with his trusty boomerang!). He will be played by Ian Ousley.
As well as Katara and Sokka’s grandmother — known affectionately as Gran Gran. She will be played by Casey Camp-Horinek.
His sister, Azula, who is a fire bending prodigy that is obsessed with power, will be played by Elizabeth Yu.
Zuko’s father, Firelord Ozai — who ruthlessly rules over the Fire Nation and seeks to conquer the world — will be played by Daniel Dae Kim.
We can’t forget about Uncle Iroh — who acts as a father figure to Zuko and brings laughter, wisdom and the most beautiful and wholesome energy to the show. He will be played by Paul Sun-Hyung Lee.
There’s also Gyatso — a kind and caring Air Nomad monk, who is the guardian and best friend to Aang. He will be played by Lim Kay Siu.
As well as Commander Zhao — a scheming and ambitious Fire Nation military officer. He’ll be played by Ken Leung.
Suki, who is the strong and fearless leader of the Kyoshi Warriors, will be played by Maria Zhang.
The legendary Avatar Kyoshi, known in the series for ushering in an unprecedented period of peace and prosperity between the four nations, will be played by Yvonne Chapman.
While the wise and benevolent Avatar Roku, who succeeded Kyoshi after she was reincarnated, will be played by C.S. Lee.
Avatar Kuruk from the Water Tribe (who was the avatar before Kyoshi) will also be included in the series. He’ll be played by Meegwun Fairbrother.
The ethereal Princess Yue, who hails from the Northern Water Tribe and develops a romantic connection with Sokka (cue Zuko saying “That’s rough, buddy”) will be played by Amber Midthunder.
The ruthless and sarcastic bounty hunter known as June will be played by Arden Cho.
Then, of course, we have Ty Lee — the skilful acrobatic performer who utilises chi-blocking, a form of martial arts, to take down her opponents. She’ll be played by Momona Tamada.
Alongside Ty Lee, we have Mai, Zuko’s love interest who is extremely proficient at throwing knives and stilettos. She’ll be played by Thalia Tran.
Going back to the Earth Kingdom, there’s the eccentric King Bumi who rules over Omashu. He’s a close friend of Avatar Aang and will be played by Utkarsh Ambudkar.
The Mechanist, known for his useful, but odd, inventions, will be played by Danny Pudi.
Koh, the face stealer — who is one of the ancient spirits we see in Avatar — will be voiced by none other than the legendary George Takei.
And lastly, the Cabbage Merchant — one of the most iconic characters in ATLA — will be played by James Sie.
That about rounds up the main cast of Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender (here’s the full list of all the characters that have been cast). While there’s no word yet on a release date, the streaming platform confirmed that production has started on the series — and also blessed us with some adorable photos of the cast together.
On starting production of the much-anticipated live-action adaptation, showrunner Albert Kim said: “We’re thrilled to start production on this incredible project and we’re especially excited to work with the technology-benders at PXO to create the wondrous world of ATLA using the most advanced techniques available to filmmakers anywhere in the world.”
I don’t know about you guys, but I’m getting pretty damn excited to see this live-action come to life. But what do you think and how do you feel about the casting? Let us know in the comments.
