Entertainment

Meet Miya Cech, The Actor Who Will Star as Toph in Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2

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Sep 26, 2024 / 395 Views

Evan Walker

As season 2 of Avatar: The Last Airbender officially begins production, Netflix revealed the new cast joining the series. American actor Miya Cech has been cast as Toph, one of the most powerful and master earthbenders. Let us look at the movies and TV shows Miya Cech has featured in, her new role and her personal life.

On 20 September, Netflix announced the production of the second instalment of Avatar: The Last Airbender. Along with it, they also made Cech’s casting public as part of the Geeked Week festival. As fans await more adventure and epic battles in the realm of the four kingdoms, we bring you some more details.

Everything to know about Miya Cech: Career, personal life and more

Her role in Avatar: The Last Airbender

A Tudum report, dated 20 September, broke silence over the new casting of season 2. Executive producers Jabbar Raisani and Christine Boylan said, there were “thousands upon thousands” of auditions submitted for Toph, but they both immediately knew that Cech was a perfect fit.

That character Toph Beifong is a master earthbender. She was born blind and was raised to sense and feel the world around her. Speaking about her role and the preparations, Cech told Tudum, “I’ve been in boot camp for about a week and a half now and still have a lot of work to do, but it’s super fun. I have some martial arts experience.” The role is also a big step towards diverse casting and inclusivity.

“One of the most incredible aspects of this show is the diversity of the Asian cultures in the Avatar: The Last Airbender world. 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. 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,” she added.

According to Teen Vogue, casting for Toph finished in July 2024. With this, she joins an illustrious cast ensemble that has made season 1 a roaring success. Gordon Cormier plays Aang, the Avatar who can control all four elements; Ian Ousley and Kiawentiio play Aang’s friends Sokka and Katara, respectively; and Dallas Liu plays the anti-hero Fire Nation Crown Prince Zuko. Daniel Dae Kim plays the iconic Firelord Ozai, and George Takei reprises his role as Koh the Face Stealer.

While season 2 marks the penultimate instalment, the saga will end with season 3.

Cech made her acting debut in 2015

Miya Cech debuted with Hawaii Five-0 as young Kono Kalakaua — the older role of which is essayed by Grace Park, the main character of the show. In real life, the character is an expert sniper in the Hawaii Five-0 task force.

While she dabbled in the television industry at the beginning, Miya Cech made her film debut in 2018 with The Darkest Minds as Zu, a mute girl who could manipulate electricity. Although the film wasn’t a hit, Cech’s performance was widely appreciated.

Miya Cech movies and TV shows

In such a short time, Cech has appeared in several noted movies and TV shows. Besides playing a younger Park in Hawaii Five-0, Cech portrayed a younger Sasha in Always Be My Maybe (2019). Ali Wong played the older character.

However, this is not the only time she was cast as a younger Ali Wong character. Cech appeared as the younger Amy Lau in the superhit Netflix series Beef (2023-).

Cech has previously appeared in Marvelous and the Black Hole (2021) as the rebellious teenager Sammy Ko. Sammy is reeling from her mother’s death when he comes across Margot (played by Rhea Perlman), a semi-successful kids’ birthday party magician. What follows is a slice-of-life adventure with an emotional touch.

American Girl: Corinne Tan (2023) is another heartwarming film starring Miya and her sister Kai Cech. Miya plays a ski enthusiast who adopts a puppy after her parents get divorced. While everyone around her adapts to their new lives, she trains her furry friend and finds a new purpose.

Did you know she had a Nickelodeon connection before landing the Avatar: The Last Airbender role? In 2019, she appeared as Akiko Yamato in Nickelodeon’s re-imagined Are You Afraid of the Dark series.

Some of the other Miya Cech movies and TV shows include You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah (2023), Surfside Girls (20222-2023), American Horror Story (2011-), Young Rock (2023) and The Santa Clauses (2022-2023).

Miya Cech was born in Tokyo and is an Asian American adoptee

Miya Cech was born in Tokyo on 4 March 2007. The 17-year-old actress was adopted as an infant and raised in Davis, North California, USA. Interestingly, her two older siblings are also adopted, from Kazakhstan and Japan.

Speaking to the LA Times she said, “When I was younger, being adopted seemed normal to me. Half of my family is Japanese on my mom’s side, so we celebrate Japanese holidays. And we celebrate each other’s cultures.”

Reminiscing about her childhood, she said “I think I just thought everybody [was adopted]. But I feel like that’s really wonderful because that gives me a unique story — a story that I have, a story that is mine.”

For Cech, portraying Toph also comes as an opportunity to honour her heritage. “I personally am of Chinese and Japanese American descent and I’m so excited to represent my Chinese heritage in Toph Beifong,” she told Tudum.

Miya Cech is a fan of the Avatar: The Last Airbender animated series

It is a big achievement for Miya Cech. The actress has been a long-time fan of the beloved Nickelodeon TV show and now she gets to be a part of it. Not only that, she is playing one of her favourite characters.

“I grew up watching the animated series. I’ve always been such a big fan and probably watched it 10 times all the way through,” Tudum quotes her. “Toph was always my favourite character, so as soon as the casting notice came out, I begged my team to please get me an audition,” she added.

Miya Cech is a trained dancer

In her recent interview with Tudum, Cech shed light on her preparations for playing Toph and revealed she is a trained dancer.

“I have a great instructor who I take private classes with back home in Northern California, and he keeps me in shape when I’m not working. I also have some dance experience from when I was younger that has been very helpful as I learn about Toph’s movements,” she said.

She started as a child model

Miya Cech’s career began before she took up scripts. She reportedly started as a child model, posing for brands like Gap, Ralph Lauren, Skechers and Gymboree.

(Hero image credit: Photo by Amy Sussman / Getty Images North America/ Getty Images via AFP and Featured image credit: Miya Cech/ @miyacech/ Instagram)

This story first appeared on Lifestyle Asia Bangkok