World Avatars/Ancient Avatars. Africa, Middle East, East Asia, and South America.
Suhani Kalita as Katara
Age: 19
Ethnicity: Indian
Credits: Pavithra (young) in Irandu Mugam
My weakest choice in a few regards. Not the best actress on my dream cast, but for some reason, it just clicked in my mind when I thought of her as Katara. Even though she’s a little old. If I were honestly casting a redo of this film, I would probably pick somebody else, but from my own experiences, I’m going with her. I also thought of Rubina Ali, who played Latika as a child in Slumdog Millionaire.
Dev Patel as Sokka
Age: 21
Ethnicity: Indian
Credits: Jamal Malik in Slumdog Millionaire, Anwar Kharral in Skins
In all honesty, I don’t think Dev Patel did a bad job as Zuko in The Last Airbender, he just… wasn’t Zuko. But I think he could make a decent Sokka. I would like to cast an actor of Inuit descent, however I’m afraid I don’t know any at all, and I’d have to choose based entirely off of looks if I googled around to find one, which isn’t really fair. Still, given this limitation, I think Patel would make a decent Sokka. But let’s not cast Aasif Mandvi again.
Sosuke Ikematsu as Zuko
Age: 21
Ethnicity: Japanese
Credits: Higen in The Last Samurai
I have fond memories of him playing a young Genghis Khan in a Japanese movie about his life from a few years ago. And I think he just looks the part (particularly his eyes). I also chose him because he’s a bit older than most of the other actors I’ve chosen, and as he’s the oldest of the teenage characters, I thought he’d be a great pick.
Jo Jung Eun as Toph Bei Fong
Age: 15
Ethnicity: Korean
Credits: Jang Geum (young) in Dae Jang Geum
For Toph, I went with Jo Jung Eun, who I’m familiar with through a couple of K-Dramas, most notably Dae Jang Geum. Korea has a lot of great child actors, and I knew I would have to pick either Toph or Aang from the bunch as the youngest characters on the show. Also I don’t know many male child actors from Korea, so it was easier to pick one out for Toph. Jo Jung Eun can pull off all sides of this character, I don’t doubt that, so I think she’d be fantastic for the role.
Suzuka Ohgo as Azula
Age: 18
Ethnicity: Japanese
Credits: Sayuri (young) in Memoirs of a Geisha, Hatchin (voice) in Michiko e Hatchin
Suzuka Ohga is a great actress, who really won me over with her voice role in Michiko e Hatchin (which is, for the record, one of my favourite shows). It’s a tough role, Azula, as she is a complex character, and let’s be frank, a bit of an evil bitch. I went with someone with a bit more experience and a bit of age (though still young enough looking) to compensate for that.
