Why is Zuko indian

Zuko, a character first introduced in the animated TV series “The Last Airbender” and later in a full length feature film of the same name, is the prince of the Fire Nation and a primary antagonist in many ways. Traditionally portrayed as Asian (most likely Japanese) in the TV series, the full-length feature film changed the actor in this role to be filled by Indian actor Dev Patel – famous for his leading role as Jamal Malik in Dave Patel’s “Slumdog Millionaire”.

While there is no official declaration as to why director M. Night Shyamalan (famous for movies such as “The Sixth Sense” and “The Village”) decided on using Dev Patel for the role a number of rumors exist as to why this is the case. Primarily these revolve around both the shared nationality of the director and Dev Patel as well as comments of “white favoritism” that circulated prior to the film’s release that may have pressured the change.

One particularly strong rumor is that an Asian actor’s organization, upon reviewing the film, noted that all of the case appeared to be white. Given the heavily Asian nature of the animated series they took offense to this and lodged formal complaints against the producers, thus forcing the change to occur. This has neither been confirmed nor denied by the producers, though a large number of viewers have generally discredited the claim.

Why is Zuko indian

A more likely explanation is that Dev Patel was selected not for his nationality or due to some external pressure but due to his own abilities in the field as an actor. Having been nominated for a number of awards following his role in Slumdog Millionaire as well as the UK-based TV series “Skins”, Dev Patel is a widely recognized actor in his field and engenders a decent fan following of his own due to his popularity. The combination of both his multiple awards, general popular appeal and current status in international pop culture places him in a position that makes him readily desirable by many directors and producers on the global film market, thus making him an ideal candidate for a film adaptation of a popular TV animated series.