Albert Kim’s Avatar: The Last Airbender is an adventure fantasy action series, which is the live-action adaptation of the animated series of the same name, which ran from 2005 to 2008. The story follows Aang; the current Avatar, played by Gordon Cormier, trying to end the ambitions of the Fire Nation. He sets out on a journey to master the four elements while being pursued by the exiled prince of Fire Nation who captures him to regain his honor.
The first season of the show includes eight episodes and, upon its release on Netflix, has received mixed responses from the critics and the audience. The show stars Gordon Cormier, Kiawentiio, Ian Ousley, Dallas Liu, and more. Show runner Albert Kim opened up about the audition and the casting process for the show.
Avatar: The Last Airbender’s Albert Kim talks about the top-secret audition process
During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Avatar: The Last Airbender’s showrunner, Albert Kim, was asked about his process of casting actors that resembled the original description of the characters from the animated series. The Asian and Indigenous cast on the show was proof of that, and he went on to explain,
“We were committed to authenticity not just to the cultures that inspired the characters, but to the characters themselves. In addition to looking at Asian and Indigenous communities for these actors, we also wanted people who were close in age to the characters. So that meant, finding a 12-year-old or someone close to 12 to play a 12-year-old, which limits your options more.”
The show runner further explained that the challenge that they faced was that the actors couldn’t know that they were auditioning for Avatar: The Last Airbender. He noted,
“I had to write fake scenes for them to read and audition with. A lot of times they were reading off scenes about being in a math class or playing basket ball, stiff like that. A lot of times we weren’t, or at least I wasn’t even listening to the lines being spoken, because it had nothing to do with Avatar. “
Albert Kim mentioned that the secret auditions with fake scenes were more about trying to envision the actors into the characters. He went ahead to compliment Gordon Cormier, who plays the Avatar Aang on the show. He said that there was something about him as a person beyond what he put on the table as a performer, and it felt like he was the Aang they had been looking for.
Albert Kim shares the challenges of the live-action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender
During the conversation with THR, the showrunner was asked about the challenges he faced while adapting an animated series into a live-action into eight episodes. To which he explained,
“There’s certain things you can draw that when you’re trying to translate in live-action are incredibly complicated, both practically and financially. There are so many epic sequences in the original series that I wish we could have done, but it would have just broken the bank many times over.”
Kim added that they had to carefully pick what they wanted to show, and the toughest part of the process was deciding what to leave behind. He acknowledged that some fans who must have seen the animated series might not be happy as they didn’t get their favorite episodes or the characters, adding that he gets it and it pains him too.
“There’s the reality of creating eight-hour long episodes for a serialized drama and also expanding the world in places and telling new parts of the story that hadn’t been told before.”
The show has received mixed reviews from critics and fans but the showrunner hopes that the new fans will get introduced to this incredible world and understand why Avatar: The Last Airbender has resonated with people all these years.
Avatar: The Last Airbender is streaming on Netflix.
