Dress Tang Chi, Shoes Lubello, Accessories Varanasi Necklace & Lox & Chains Rings
For Elizabeth Yu, stepping into the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender became more than a role. As Princess Azula, she found herself exploring power, femininity, identity, and the complicated bonds of family. The experience also brought her closer to a sense of Asian community she had not fully known growing up. With season two on the horizon, Yu reflects on what the show has awakened in her, the freedom of playing someone so fearless, and the cast dynamics that keep things playful off screen.
Editor-in-Chief Kelly Mi Li @kellymili
Photography Steve Limones @stevelimonesphotography
Fashion Director Benjamin Holtrop @benjaminholtrop
Creative Direction Aleksandar Tomovic @alekandsteph
Movement Director James Burke @jameslukeburke
Video Alberto Gonzales @alberto_filmdirector
Photography Assistant Nick Ahmet @nick_amet
Fashion Styling Assistants Emily K.E. Johnson @emilykejohnson & Welsh @awelch.ingram
Social Media Tesia Kuh @thefirstthree.co
Production Assistants Lizzie Mansour & Aisha Dandia
Location The London Hotel West Hollywood @thelondonweho
Special Thanks to Mei Coble & Netflix
Growing up, were there any parts of your Asian heritage that shaped the way you see yourself as an actor and storyteller today?
Not really. I am half Asian, and I grew up mainly with my mom, who is the white half of me. I really did not have any kind of Asian journey until working on this show.
How did it feel to become part of this world and be surrounded by so much Asian culture?
It was amazing! I had never been in a room with more than 15 Asian people before working on this show, so that in itself was really eye opening to me.
Meeting so many different people, each with their own kind of Asian pride journey, was incredible. I grew up in a white town, so I just never really thought about it. Then being on this show makes you think, what does that mean to me? It has been really beautiful. It has been incredible getting to meet so many people, and a lot of fans who love the show are Asian too, so that sense of community has been awesome.
There are not many roles written for powerful Asian women. How does it feel to embody Princess Azula?
It was amazing. When I first auditioned for Azula, I did not know it was Azula. It was a fake character with a basketball team plotline, and I had no idea what I was auditioning for.
Even then, I wrote a letter to the showrunner and the producers when I had a second callback. I was like, “You guys do not understand. I do not audition for these girls, these women. This does not happen.”
Even just auditioning and getting to play with a character who had so much strength felt empowering. I feel like we are often seen in more of a girl next door way in Hollywood, so getting to audition for that part was empowering in itself. Getting to actually play her was a whole new level.
Did playing Azula change you in any way?
For sure. We filmed seasons two and three back to back, so that was over the course of more than a year. Playing her taught me so much about what empowerment means to me, and also femininity with power.
She is a no BS kind of girl, and I am a people pleaser. I am very clumsy and very much that kind of vibe, so playing her almost felt like an alter ego. It was super eye opening, and there was a real freedom in getting to play her like that.
From season one to season two, what changed the most for you?
We had a long time between season one and starting season two. It was a long time to sit and think about, if I got the chance to go back, what would I do differently? What would I try this time around?
I think we all had our own forms of excitement, like finally getting to try something new with the character or finally getting to do a certain plotline. We got to sit with all of our ideas and all of our excitement, and we came into season two with a renewed passion for what we were a part of.
You and Dallas Liu play siblings on screen. How does your off-screen dynamic resemble a brother-sister relationship?
It just is one. I love him so much. He is such a good person and such a hardworking actor.
We would have rehearsal sessions together where we would just talk about our characters and that sibling relationship. Through working on this show with him, I have gotten to know him so well, so making it feel like these two people have history, or that these two people know each other really well, came very naturally.
All of the Zuko and Azula-isms followed from that, along with our own character development. He is such an easy person to work with because he is so knowledgeable about his character and his storyline, and that made my job so easy.
What is something people might be surprised to learn about you when you are not on set?
I like video games. I like Roblox. Me and my friends will FaceTime and play brain rot Roblox games, and it is so much fun.
What superpower from the show would be the most useful in real life?
Waterbending, because you can heal. That is pretty clutch. Fire is useful too, but we have lighters and matches. I would say water.
Which castmate is most likely to prank someone?
Ian.
Who is most like their character in real life?
That is hard because I know them so well. Everybody is pretty different, but I also know all the similarities between them. I am going to say Ian, because he is incredibly funny.
Who is the most gullible?
Probably me.
Who is the most competitive?
We are not really competitive, but we play pool when we hang out, and it can get pretty heated. There are two people who are very good at pool, and then me and another person are not very good at pool.
Maybe Dallas, because when he does not make the ball in, it is not great.
Right: Shirt Onarin, Pants Sehnsucht, Shoes Lubello, Accessories Lagos
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