Cho’s casting in the anime is a win for the meme-turned-movement #StarringJohnCho, which showed what major films would look like if they cast more Asian actors in lead roles.
Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko insist they won’t repeat the mistakes of M. Night Shyamalan’s 2010 live-action film adaptation of the animated series.
“It is clear that representing this character in a culturally accurate way holds significance for people, and that to neglect this responsibility would continue a worrying tendency to obscure ethnic minority stories and voices in the arts.”