Lim Kay Siu chatted to Courageous Nerd about playing ‘Gyatso’ in Netflix’s live-action adaption of Avatar: The Last Airbender.
A character actor, he has been working for almost 40 years across a variety of projects.
In this interview, we chat about landing the role of Gyatso, working with Gordon Cormier (Aang) and much more.
How did your journey in acting first start – what made you decide to pursue it professionally?
Lim Kay Siu: My acting journey began quite accidentally. I was presenter for a friend’s educational TV show on “How to put on a play”. We were filming one of Singapore’s first professional Theatre companies.
I was fascinated by all the auditions. As we were packing up our cameras, I made the snap decision to audition, and landed a role in their first play!
I found my process in acting to be one of compassion – of putting myself in the shoes of this character I was playing! I found this to be very therapeutic and couldn’t get enough.
And I was lucky in that they kept casting me over the next 5 years!
Now, I have been acting professionally for 39 years, and loving it!
You play the recurring role of “Gyatso” in the Avatar: The Last Airbender live-action remake. How would you explain the premise and your character, to anyone who might be unfamiliar?
Lim Kay Siu: Monk Gyatso is the lead character, Aang’s, first mentor, father-figure, and friend. Gyatso is wise, experienced and powerful.
Also, very loving, with the surprising innocence of a child. That brings a spirited and charming sense of humor! Aang learns so much from Gyatso, that when he faces apparently impossible situations, he draws from his memory of his time with Gyatso.
It is a character that I fell in love with when I watched the original Nickelodeon series!
How was the audition process to secure the part of Gyatso?
Lim Kay Siu: The auditions were quite hush-hush. I was encouraged to think of my character as a Mr Miyagi-type character. Tough Love. In the auditions, his character was called August.
During the 2nd audition, I read with Gordon Cormier. My wife, Neo Swee Lin set up the rolling script because I was having trouble learning the lines for the audition! Thankfully the audition went well. We were both bowled over by Gordon’s sheer talent, and his sharp intelligence.
And later, when acting with him, I found out how kind and generous he is. Just like Aang.
What do you most enjoy about playing the role of Gyatso?
Lim Kay Siu: Gyatso’s deep love, entwined with his innocent, child-like innocence, and delightful sense of humor felt like a challenge at first, but became such a pleasure when acting with Gordon.
I happened to be reading a lot about the present Dalai Lama just before this! The Dalai Lama’s name is Gyatso – which means Ocean.
Philosophically, the ocean is a Tibetan symbol of letting things be, and letting things unfold without interfering. A simple, yet great teaching to me.
I fell in love with the role even more.
What can fans of the existing franchise expect from this new iteration of the story?
Lim Kay Siu: I think with live-action, the truth of the relationships between the characters, can be deeper emotionally.
Greater emotional nuance is possible.
I understand that the makers of this Netflix series have taken very special care to tell the spirit of the story of Avatar-The Last Airbender as closely as possible to the original series. I love that.
All my scenes are with Gordon as Aang. That has been the tremendous grounding for me. He is amazing. He made the love come to fruition and reality. And I love the script for our scenes!
Considering you are originally from Singapore, how different or similar is the Asian film industry to others from around the world?
Lim Kay Siu: I am an English-speaking Asian actor. I have really enjoyed coming home to Singapore in the ‘90s from London, to address the human, social and political situations in the society I grew up in.
Learning in a larger industry in London taught me and my fellow-actor wife, Neo Swee Lin a lot about the industry. Yet somehow, retaining what is unique about us, as South-East Asians, and as individuals. Swee Lin is my touchstone and my true partner in love and in life.
Now it is time to stretch our wings and fly. With no children, no parents, and no pets in our lives now, we have realised that what we both want, is to stretch our wings in the industry here in the US, if we can!
So, we are yet to see what the industry is like here, if we can get a look-in! It’s very exciting!
Singapore is our home, but it is a very small country, with a very limited audience, in terms of numbers.
And Asians are now being portrayed recently as fully developed human beings, with fully developed human stories here in the US! It is wonderful.
Aside from Avatar: The Last Airbender, are there any other upcoming projects you can discuss at this time?
Lim Kay Siu: I have a theatre project coming up later this year in Singapore. I’m not at liberty to discuss it yet, I’m afraid, apart from the title: The Accidental Death of an Anarchist by Dario Fo.
It a social commentary on police brutality in Italy in the ‘60s! We examine if there are any equivalents in modern Singapore, and against whom in our society.
Avatar: The Last Airbender premiered on Netflix on February 22
Follow writer Conor O’Brien on Twitter
A lifelong TV and Film buff, Conor founded Courageous Nerd in 2019. He has conducted hundreds of interviews for the site, as well as written comprehensive feature articles on a variety of topics. You can find him on X: @conorrcn.
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