Lately, the entertainment industry has been on some sort of kick that involves making beloved childhood cartoons into live-action films. However, until now no one has decided to take on the challenge of a full live-action series. In a quest for redemption with regards to the highly criticized live-action movie Avatar: The Last Airbender, Netflix is taking on the challenge of making a new and improved live-action series that will take us through Aang’s journey once again–this time, in a way that will hopefully makes us die-hard Avatar fans proud.
One of the biggest flaws in the original live action film, directed by M. Night Shyamalan, was that the cast was very white-washed. The original series actually reflected a variety of ethnicities, with Aang himself being Asian and Sokka and Katara resembling Native American or Hispanic persons, so it was disappointing that these three main characters were all portrayed by Caucasian actors. Although we know little about what to expect from the new series, we do know that the producers have promised they will not make that same mistake. With this promise in mind, here are a few guesses of who might be in the cast.
Sonaya Mizuno as Azula
This Japanese actress is known for her roles in EX Machina, La La Land, and most recently Annihilation. She definitely gives off the badass, take-action attitude that embodies the villainous character of Azula. While it’s unknown whether Azula will be making an appearance in the live action series’ first season, as she becomes more prominent later on we can hope someone as marvelous as Mizuno will play her.
Ludi Lin as Zuko
Lin recently starred in The Power Rangers as Zack and was featured in season two of the Netflix original series Marco Polo. With training in martial arts, he would be perfect for the fire blasting, angsty teen Zuko. Also, Lin is of Chinese descent, making him a good fit to play prince of the Fire Nation which takes the most cultural influence from traditional Chinese culture.
Lana Condor as Toph
Condor is most known for her latest role as Lara Jean in All the Boys I Ever Loved where she proved just how witty she is. She has also rolled in action and drama films such as X-Men: Apocalypse and Patriot’s Days. With so much inter-genre experience, she would perfect for the role of Toph, a character who captured our hearts with her no-nonsense attitude and witty roasts long ago.
Forrest Goodluck as Sokka
Sokka and Katara are both members of the Southern Water Tribe, which is heavily influenced by Native American culture. Considering his native American heritage as well as being in the proper age range to play the character, I think he would be a great fit to play the fun-loving character of Sokka.
Devery Jacobs as Katara
As I mentioned earlier, Katara’s character is heavily influenced by Native American culture, which makes this Mohawk actress prefect for the part. She is most known for her contribution in American Gods and Rhymes for Young Ghouls. Katara, being the mother figure of the group needs to be played by someone who can bring emotion to the screen. With Jacob’s background in the dramatic features she would be a great pick for the part.
Karan Brar as Aang
Aang is probably the most challenging character to cast considering his age and complex personality. He is portrayed as the youngest of the group, but is technically over 100 years old. Brar has been featured on several different Disney Channel shows such as Jessie and Bunk’d, and due to this experience I think he would able to accurately portray Aang’s silly and youthful nature. Also, given the fact that the Air Nomads (Aang’s people) are heavily based on Indian culture, Brar’s Indian ancestry reflects the cultural background of Aang’s character.
While nothing is set in stone about the series, including the cast, fans and interested viewers can look forward to watching the live action series on Netflix in late 2019 or early 2020.