The Last Airbender Star Defends Controversial Changes Made to Sokka

Despite some controversial changes, Avatar: The Last Airbender character Sokka is still the one “we know and love,” according to actor Ian Ousley. In a recent interview with GamesRadar+, Ousley addressed the changes that have been made to the character’s sexist attitude, changes that have led to some backlash from fans online, saying that they are not “trying to take out anything.” See what the actor had to say below…

“The animated show really is the heart and soul of what our live-action show is. We were not trying to take out anything. Obviously we took out that element, but he still has that attitude. Not a sexist attitude, but it’s morphed into more of – in Sokka and Katara’s relationship – ‘I’m the leader and you’re the follower’ situation. Stuff like that. He’s still the Sokka we know and love from the cartoon. I don’t even think fans would notice some of those things, honestly, [when] watching our show… He definitely still has his arcs and his lessons in the show.”

The backlash from fans of the original Avatar: The Last Airbender came after Ousley’s co-star, Kiawentiio, who plays the water-bender and Sokka’s on-screen sister Katara in the Netflix series, revealed that the live action adaptation takes a different approach to Sokka’s views on women.

“I feel like we also took out the element of how sexist [Sokka] was. I feel like there were a lot of moments in the original show that were iffy.”

This was met with criticism from fans, who felt that changing Sokka from the beginning removes his growth and maturity throughout the story and thus waters down his arc.

Avatar: The Last Airbender Has Been Met With a Somewhat Mixed Response

Based on the animated series of the same name, Avatar: The Last Airbender is set amid four nations; water, air, earth, and fire, and follows a young boy known as the Avatar who must master the four elemental powers to save a world at war, and fight a ruthless enemy bent on stopping him.

The response from critics to Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbenderhas sadly been rather middling, with the series now standing at 60% on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes. One such critic who did enjoy what they saw, however, was MovieWeb’s own Lauren Perry, who describes Avatar: The Last Airbender as “dazzling” and praise the show for capturing “the heart of the original.”

“Around episode four or five, it begins to really feel like the old animated series, and the finale of the show is nothing short of epic. The stakes are high, the production value is immense, and the CGI was clearly saved for the end. The cinematography is beautiful, with the coloration choices especially well done in the last episode. This adaptation aimed high.”

With Avatar: The Last Airbender now available to stream on Netflix, how do you feel that the live action take on Sokka has fared against the animated original?