Streaming giant Netflix is on the verge of releasing its live-action version of the popular cartoon Avatar: The Last Airbender, but the newly released trailer is already causing a wokelash for not featuring enough “dark-skinned” actors.
If you are unaware, the original 2005-2008 cartoon series featured a story of a young Asian boy, who has the ability to magically control earth, wind, fire, and water, and who sets out to stop the evil “Fire Nation” from taking over the world. The series is grounded in Chinese and Japanese culture, and Buddhism, but also plumbs other tribal communities. The Water Tribe, for instance, was based on the Inuit culture in the original cartoon series.
The 2010 live-action Paramount film spearheaded by M. Night Shyamalan was panned by wokesters for “whitewashing” many of the characters and for not having enough ethnic actors in key roles. Now, with the release of the first trailer for the coming Netflix treatment of the property, some are raising similar complaints.
According to Yahoo News, many on social media are attacking the Netflix effort for not having dark-skinned actors playing the Water Tribe characters.
In particular, detractors are pointing to the two main Water Tribe characters, siblings Sokka and Katara, played by Ian Ousley and Kiawentiio Tarbell respectively. The actors are being called “too light-skinned” by wokesters. This, even though both actors have claimed indigenous heritage in real life.
https://twitter.com/Rebel0fReality/status/1749908682089832825
Not only is he whitewashed but he lacks the sass and charisma that made Sokka's sarcasm so likable. https://t.co/GPrgC3sfSz
— Taylor Goethe | 🍉 (@InspectorNerd) January 23, 2024
reminder they not only casted a ton of settlers for indigenous roles, they also completely erased casting inuit people when the water tribe is largely based on their culture. https://t.co/sfyBAWHWXl
— 💤 (@bangingmyhead) January 24, 2024
I admit the trailer for Netflix’s live action take on Avatar: The Last Airbender looks pretty good (I’ll forever be wary of adaptations thanks to a certain director) but why is it so hard to cast dark-skinned characters for the water tribe? 😭 #TheLastAirbender
— Tahira Sequeira (@TeeSeq) January 24, 2024
I’ve noticed that most of the time when I see a live action indigenous person they are several shades lighter than the source material. Marvel has also done this.
— Lunatargaryen (@lunalewinsky) January 24, 2024
Many fans have also noted that there were bad vibes coming from the production from the beginning when the creators of the original cartoon series, Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, quit their roles in the production of the Netflix series over “creative differences.”
“Netflix’s live-action adaptation of Avatar has the potential to be good. It might turn out to be a show many of you end up enjoying,” DiMartino wrote after quitting the show. “But what I can be certain about is that whatever version ends up on-screen, it will not be what Bryan and I had envisioned or intended to make.”
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