Avatar: The Last Airbender Finds Its Toph For Season 2

As Avatar: The Last Airbender was renewed for Seasons 2 and 3 by Netflix, TLA fans have been wondering who could take on the role of Toph Beifong, the blind Earthbending warrior. Toph’s casting was seen as a crucial crux of the show and Netflix has announced that Miya Cech (Netflix’s You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah) has landed the key role.

The casting was unveiled at Netflix’s Geeked Week live event Thursday with a teaser of Toph’s abilities, which you can watch below.

Executive producers Jabbar Raisani and Christine Boylan said in a joint statement that there were “thousands upon thousands” auditions submitted for Toph. Still, they both immediately knew that Cech was a perfect fit.

“We make a point of reviewing submissions separately and after countless tapes, we both had the same reaction…Miya is our Toph,” they explained. “Miya is a brilliant performer who knows how to precisely balance the sarcastic sense of humor, stubbornness, and vulnerability that is Toph Beifong. Her physicality and emotional dexterity really put her in a class of one.”

For Cech, who is of Chinese and Japanese American descent, portraying Toph is a way to honor her heritage. “I’m so excited to represent my Chinese heritage in Toph Beifong. One of the most incredible aspects of this show is the diversity of the Asian cultures in the Avatar: The Last Airbender world,” Cech said. “Even though the universe is fantasy, it feels like every culture is represented in some way and tied to the history and traditions of that culture or country.”

She continued with how she felt that a show with this sort of representation is something she couldn’t imagine even a few years ago.

“Just a few years ago, you might have seen one or two of these actors in a show or movie, but on this show we are all able to represent this world together and work together and collaborate. It’s really amazing and a gift as an actor.”

Cech joins Gordon Cormier as Avatar Aang, Kiawentiio as Katara, Ian Ousley as Sokka, Dallas Liu as Prince Zuko, Paul Sun-Hyung Lee as Uncle Iroh, Ken Leung as Commander Zhao, and Daniel Dae Kim as Fire Lord Ozai.