Netflix’s ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’ Announces Live Action Cast, Showrunner

Everything changed, when Netflix announced the main cast and creative team for their live action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender. Which is a thing that happened this morning, as the streaming service finally revealed the actors who will be playing Aang, Katara, Sokka and Zuko in the flesh; as well as the folks who will be guiding their adventures.

Based on the beloved Nickelodeon cartoon, which gained a second life when it dropped on Netflix last year, the live action series will be showrun, executive produced, and written by Albert Kim, who has previously worked on series like Sleepy Hollow and Nikita. In a blog post from Kim via Netflix, the showrunner noted that him falling in love with Avatar was “all my daughter’s fault. She’s the one who got me hooked.”

In the post, Kim goes on to discuss that when Netflix offered him the opportunity to develop Avatar for live-action, he was hesitant; but ultimately won over by three ideas: first, that VFX technology would allow him to fully develop the world of the series; second, Netflix’s format would, according to Kim, allow for an “ongoing serialized narrative”; and third, it was a chance to showcase “Asian and Indigenous characters as living, breathing people,” something that the original, though beloved, mostly did not do.

And certainly, those three bullet-points address the big issues fans have not with the animated Avatar: The Last Airbender, but another adaptation of the property that goes unmentioned in the information Netflix released today: M. Night Shyamalan’s much-maligned live action movie adaptation, which arguably failed on all three of those counts. So that’s good news! But this series adaptation has still been fraught with behind the scenes drama of its own. Specifically, Avatar creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko abruptly left the show in 2020, and later set up a mini-studio at Nickelodeon to develop their own Avatar series, shorts and movies.

Confusing? Possibly. But it also means that Avatar fans will be getting multiple shows on multiple streaming services and networks, including this live action series. And though the proof will be in the cabbages, as they say (nobody says that), the cast certainly has the right look for the characters Avatar fans know and love. Here are the official character descriptions from Netflix:

GORDON CORMIER (he/him) is AANG (12), a fearless and fun-loving twelve-year-old who just happens to be the Avatar, master of all four elements and the keeper of balance and peace in the world. An airbending prodigy, Aang is a reluctant hero, struggling to deal with the burden of his duties while still holding on to his adventurous and playful nature.

KIAWENTIIO (she/her) is KATARA (14), a determined and hopeful waterbender, the last in her small village. Though only fourteen, she’s already endured great personal tragedy, which has held her back from rising to her true potential, though it’s never dimmed her warm and caring spirit.

IAN OUSLEY (he/him) is SOKKA (16), Katara’s sardonic and resourceful 16-year-old brother. Outwardly confident, even brash, he takes his responsibility as the leader of his tribe seriously, despite his inner doubts over his warrior skills… doubts that he masks with his wit and deadpan sense of humor.

DALLAS LIU (he/him) is ZUKO (17), a skilled firebender and the intense and guarded Crown Prince of the Fire Nation. Currently roaming the world in exile, he’s on an obsessive quest to capture the Avatar because he believes that is the only way to reclaim his life and live up to the demands of his cruel and controlling father, the Fire Lord.

These four main series regulars will be joined by a behind-the-scenes staff that includes the aforementioned Kim, as well as Executive Producers Dan Lin (The Lego Movie, Aladdin) and Lindsey Liberatore (Walker) for Rideback, and Michael Goi (Swamp Thing, American Horror Story), as well as Co-Executive Producer Roseanne Liang. Episodes of the first season will be directed by Michael Goi, Roseanne Liang and Jabbar Raisani.

Though the rest of the cast, a premiere date, and even a production start date have yet to be announced, Kim promises that he’ll keep the core of Avatar intact, while adding flourishes of his own. “I didn’t want to change things for the sake of change. I didn’t want to modernize the story, or twist it to fit current trends. Aang is not going to be a gritty antihero. Katara is not going to get curtain bangs. (I was briefly tempted to give Sokka a TikTok account though. Think of the possibilities.),” Kim notes in the blog post.

Kim also adds that “there will be surprises for existing fans and those new to the tale.” Appa and Momo romance arc, perhaps? We’ll have to wait and see, as more news about Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender continues to drop over the next few months, and likely, years.

Where to watch Avatar: The Last Airbender