“Luckily enough for me, I had tons to pull from based on the animated version. Asking and answering those questions for Sokka was really important to me. Like, what was my relationship with my dad before he left? What was my relationship with my mom like? I dove into some things that the animation doesn't explore all the way,” he expands, “Music and costumes were great access points for me as well. Putting on that costume while I'm listening to music was really helpful. I would journal a lot as Sokka every morning too.” 

 

As a kid, Ousley reflects that he would actually mimic the actions of Prince Zuko, the anti-hero of the fictional series. He laughs when thinking of the irony of pretending to be Zuko but ending up playing Sokka, one of the less intimidating and more misunderstood characters on the show. “He wants to be a warrior so bad. And he wants to be valued so badly. He wants to have something to offer, but sometimes he doesn't always feel like he has the physical capabilities for that,” he continues, “So there's a really beautiful story there, I think with him finding ways to be helpful to his friends and the mission of saving the world — without having to be the muscle, even though he so badly wants to be.” 

 

In many ways, Ousley found it easy to shapeshift into Sokka for this project. “His sarcasm really brings things together. He's so complex and so funny. I joke a lot too, especially to deflect things. So I feel very tied with Sokka in that way,” he shares. But there were surely some challenges to channeling this character, like maintaining his air of comedic relief, as the threshold for comedy in animated television is much higher. Characters can launch off of cliffs or battle with larger-than-life villainous creatures, with little to no consequences. “Everything's weightier in our show because it's real. You're looking at a real little 12-year-old dealing with saving the world. You're looking at a real Katara and a real Sokka. But I was very passionate about keeping the comedy on set.”