Since 2018, Netflix has been developing a live-action television series based on the beloved Nickelodeon fantasy animated series, Avatar: The Last Airbender. Ahead of the reimagining set to be released in 2024, the studio surprised fans in Sao Paulo, Brazil and at home viewing its Tudum event with the first look at Aang, Katara, Sokka and Prince Zuko. These photos of the core The Last Airbender characters might have just sold me on the upcoming series.
As a longtime fan of these characters, who experienced M. Night Shymalan’s fated 2010 movie, you can’t blame me for having some trepidation about another live-action remake, but these character portraits for one of Netflix's new releases are perfect!! First up, here's Aang:
We have our Avatar Aang in 13-year-old Gordon Cormier! The Canadian actor of The Stand really brought the energy of the character to life when he came out on stage in Sao Paulo, Brazil to speak about his character. I can totally see him as the airbender already and in full costume he already totally owns the role. Here's Katara as well:
All the core Avatar: The Last Airbender characters, including Kiawentiio as Katara, was announced back in summer of 2021, and finally, nearly two years later, we have the opportunity to see the vision come to life. 17-year-old Kiawentiio, who hails from a Mohawk family on a First Nations reserve herself, fully embodies the waterbender in the debut photo of her in character! And speaking of the Water Tribe...
Katara’s brother, Sokka, also looks incredible!! He will be played by Ian Ousley, who was recently in Big Shot and Physical. I can’t wait for the three of them to embark on their epic adventure after these photos. But, last but not least, Tudum also revealed a first look at The Last Airbender’s big bad, Prince Zuko. Check him out:
Prince Zuko is set to be played by Dallas Liu from PEN15. While on stage at the Tudum event, Zuko spoke fondly of sharing many scenes on set with the live-action Uncle Iroh, being portrayed by Kim’s Convenience star Paul Sun-Hyung Lee. Iroh is known for dropping all the wisdom, and I'm so intrigued how that will play into the upcoming series.
Liu also gushed about working alongside Daniel Dae Kim, who will play the sadistic ruler of the Fire Nation and Zuko’s father, Fire Lord Ozai. The Avatar: The Last Airbender series has a massive cast, we’ll have to wait to see what they look like as the release gets closer.
While the franchise’s original creators, Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, were initially announced as executive producers and showrunners on the series, they did depart the series in 2020 due to creative differences. It understandably got fans upset about what it means for the Netflix show, and honestly that element of the whole thing does have me a tad nervous. Even so, there’s plenty of reasons to be cautiously optimistic about the live-action series and these new photos are new ones.
