Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
Adventurous
Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
Netflix’s live-action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender has added George Takei, Arden Cho, and Danny Pudi to its cast, among 17 others (but still hasn’t hinted at a release date).
Joining The Water Tribe is Amber Midthunder (Prey) as Princess Yue, a compassionate spiritual leader; A Martinez (Cowboy Bebop) as Pakku, a veteran waterbender; Irene Bedard (The Stand) as Yagoda, an empathic healer and female role model; Joel Oulette (Trickster) as Hahn, a loyal and skilled warrior; Nathaniel Arcand (Heartland) as Chief Arnook, Princess Yue’s father and respected leader; and Meegwun Fairbrother (Burden of Truth) as Avatar Kuruk, a former Avatar with a haunted past.
The Earth Kingdom is composed of Cho (Partner Track) as June, a tough bounty hunter; Utkarsh Ambudkar (Ghosts) as King Bumi, an ancient ruler of Omashu; Pudi (Mythic Quest) as the Mechanist; a inventor and engineer with a son; Lucian-River Chauhan (Heartland) as Teo, the Mechanist “high-flying” son; and James Sie (Stillwater) as the fan-favorite Cabbage Merchant, who is, well, a vegetable salesman.
The Fire Nation includes Momona Tamada (Secret Headquarters) as Ty Lee, an energetic teen and BFF of Princess Azula; Thalia Tran (Raya and the Last Dragon) as Mai, a deadpan teen and ally of Princess Azula; Ruy Iskandar (Yes Day) as Lt. Jee, an officer of Prince Zuko’s ship; Hiro Kanagawa (Altered Carbon) as Fire Lord Sozin, the ruthless former ruler of Fire Nation; C.S. Lee (Dexter) as Avatar Roku, a benevolent former Avatar from Fire Nation; François Chau (The Expanse) as The Great Sage, the nation’s spiritual leader and guardian of Avatar Roku’s shrine; and Ryan Mah (The Good Doctor) as Lt. Dang, second-in-command to Commander Zhao.
Takei (Star Trek) and Randall Duk Kim (John Wick) make up the Spirit World as Koh, an ancient spirit, and Wan Shi Tong, the Spirit of Knowledge, respectively.
Avatar: The Last Airbender explores a world consisting of four nations, the Water Tribe, the Earth Kingdom, the Fire Nation, and the Air Nomads – named after the four classic elements. As teased in the character descriptions above, the tribes go head-to-head in battles for land and hierarchy. The show originally premiered on Nickelodeon in 2005 and, over the course of three seasons, gathered a cult following. The franchise has spun multiple television shows, comics books series, videos games, and a 2010 live-action film (which was a major flop).
Previously announced cast members include Gordon Cormier as Aang, Kiawentiio as Katara, Ian Ousley as Sokka, Dallas Liu as Zuko, Elizabeth Yu as Azula, Paul Sun-Hyung Lee as Iroh, Daniel Dae Kim as Fire Lord Ozai, Maria Zhang as Suki, Tamlyn Tomita as Yukari, Yvonne Chapman as Avatar Kyoshi, and Casey Camp-Horinek as Gran Gran.
The Netflix series is an “authentic” reimagining by showrunner Albert Kim (Sleepy Hollow). In a statement from the streaming giant, Kim described the show as “a chance to showcase Asian and Indigenous characters as living, breathing people. Not just in a cartoon, but in a world that truly exists, very similar to the one we live in.”
