Miya Cech

Miya Cech
Cech in 2021
Born (2007-03-04) March 4, 2007 (age 17)
Tokyo, Japan
NationalityAmerican
OccupationActress
Years active2015–present

Miyako Cech[1] (born March 4, 2007), known professionally as Miya Cech, is an American actress. She made her film debut in The Darkest Minds (2018). She then starred in Rim of the World (2019), the second revival of Are You Afraid of the Dark? (2019), The Astronauts (2020–21) and Marvelous and the Black Hole (2021).

Early life

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Cech, who is of Chinese and Japanese descent,[2] was born on March 4, 2007, in Tokyo.[3][4] She was adopted at five weeks old and raised in Davis, Northern California. She is the third of four children adopted from Japan and Kazakhstan.[5][6]

Career

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Cech began her career as a child model, landing gigs with Gap, Ralph Lauren, Skechers, and Gymboree.[7] She made her acting debut in a 2015 episode of the CBS police procedural Hawaii Five-0 as a young version of Grace Park's character. This was followed by further guest roles in American Horror Story and American Housewife in 2016 and 2017 respectively.[3] In 2018, Cech made her film debut in The Darkest Minds as Zu, a mute girl who can manipulate electricity.[8][3] The film received generally negative reviews,[9] but her performance received praise. Deadline Hollywood said "Cech do[es] what [she] can with nothing",[10] while IndieWire considered her a standout.[8]

The following year, Cech starred in the Netflix film Rim of the World as ZhenZhen.[3] Released on May 24, 2019, the film was negatively received by critics;[11] Cech's performance received commendation, however. John Serba of Decider said, "Cech is my favorite, carrying the character in her sideways glances and quiet, confident swagger[.] ... She's funnier [than the males], too."[12] Later that month, she portrayed a pre-teen version of the protagonist Sasha Tran (Ali Wong) in the Netflix film Always Be My Maybe.[13] According to Variety, this is Cech's most well-known film role.[14] Later that year, she starred as Akiko Yamato in the second revival of Nickelodeon's Are You Afraid of the Dark?. The series was critically acclaimed;[15] Decider called Cech the "[s]leeper [s]tar" of the show.[16]

From 2020 to 2021, Cech starred in the Nickelodeon drama series The Astronauts. Common Sense Media praised the child actors, calling them wonderful.[17] Cech played a lead role of Sammy in Marvelous and the Black Hole, which premiered at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival.[18] Critics acclaimed her performance. IndieWire stated, "[the film is] grounded by... Cech, who effectively channels the angst of teendom into an offbeat tale... [and] does solid work in immersing us in Sammy's frustration and sadness, even if the script doesn't always give her the best lines to punch with."[19] In December 2021, she was announced to have been cast in a lead role alongside YaYa Gosselin in Apple TV+ series Surfside Girls. She will portray Jade, who seeks to "find a scientific explanation for the existence of ghosts".[20]

On September 19, 2024, it was announced that she will play Toph Beifong in the Netflix live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series.[21]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
2018 The Darkest Minds Suzume "Zu" Kimura
2019 Rim of the World ZhenZhen [3]
Always Be My Maybe Younger Sasha [3]
2021 Marvelous and the Black Hole Sammy
2022 Dealing with Dad Young Margaret
2023 American Girl - Corinne Tan: The Movie Mei-Ling "Corinne" Tan
You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah Kym Chang Cohen
A Great Divide Ellie Licht

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
2015 Hawaii Five-0 Young Kono Kalakaua Episode: "Mo'o 'olelo Pu"[3]
2016 American Horror Story Amy Chen Episode: "Chapter 4"[3]
2017–2019 American Housewife Marigold 3 episodes[3]
2019 Arrow Young Emiko Queen Episode: "Inheritance"
Are You Afraid of the Dark? Akiko Yamato Main role; 3 episodes[3]
2020–2021 The Astronauts Samantha "Samy" Sawyer-Wei Main role; 9 episodes
2022–2023 The Santa Clauses Doc Martin 3 episodes
Surfside Girls Jade Lead role; 10 episodes
2023 Young Rock Bad Cindy 2 episodes
Beef Teenage Amy Episode: "The Drama of Original Choice"
2025 Avatar: The Last Airbender Toph Beifong Main role; season 2

References

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  1. ^ Hudspeth, Christopher (September 20, 2024). "Meet Toph! Miya Cech Will Star in Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2". Netflix. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
  2. ^ De Pacina, Michelle (January 24, 2024). "Sibling stars of 'American Girl: Corinne Tan' on representing Asian girls, blended families". NextShark. Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Miya Cech". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  4. ^ Cech, Miya [@miyacech] (March 4, 2020). "Birthday shenanigans on set. @jonathansfrakes — thanks for making sure I got the happy birthday song before every scene. 🥳😂 Thankful for one more trip around the sun and for all of the birthday wishes!! #13 #teenager #theastronauts". Retrieved December 12, 2021 – via Instagram.
  5. ^ Yamato, Jen (May 3, 2022). "With a 'Marvelous' star turn, 15-year-old Miya Cech steps into the spotlight". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
  6. ^ Forrest, Eleanor (December 18, 2020). "Miya Cech". 1883. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
  7. ^ Toro, Aida (November 14, 2020). "Miya Cech is All That Sparkles & Shines". Dreamlette. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
  8. ^ a b Erbland, Kate (July 31, 2018). "'The Darkest Minds' Review: Amandla Stenberg Shines In the Kind of YA Film They Don't Make Anymore (For Good Reason)". IndieWire. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  9. ^ "The Darkest Minds". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  10. ^ Hammond, Pete (August 2, 2018). "'The Darkest Minds' Review: Teenage Dystopian Nightmare Is YA Adaptation By The Numbers". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on August 2, 2018. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  11. ^ "Rim of the World". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  12. ^ Serba, John (May 24, 2019). "Stream It Or Skip It: 'Rim of the World' on Netflix, a Spielbergian Aliens-Attack Throwback from McG". Decider. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  13. ^ Erbland, Kate (May 31, 2019). "'Always Be My Maybe' Review: Ali Wong and Randall Park Deliver Netflix's Next Great Rom-com". IndieWire. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  14. ^ Kiang, Jessica (February 6, 2021). "'Marvelous and the Black Hole' Review: Appealing Odd-Couple Ode to the Magic of, Well, Magic". Variety. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  15. ^ "Are You Afraid of the Dark?". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  16. ^ Keller, Joel (October 11, 2019). "Stream It Or Skip It: 'Are You Afraid Of The Dark?' On Nickelodeon, A Miniseries Revival Of The '90s Teen Horror Anthology". Decider. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  17. ^ Moulton, Ashley (November 16, 2020). "The Astronauts". Common Sense Media. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  18. ^ Patten, Dominic; D'Alessandro, Anthony (December 15, 2020). "Sundance 2021 Full Lineup: Pandemic, Politics, Rita Moreno, Octavia Butler, 'Passing' & 'Sesame Street' Pack Semi-Virtual Festival". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on December 15, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  19. ^ Lattanzio, Ryan (January 31, 2021). "'Marvelous and the Black Hole' Review: A Kooky Magician and a Twee Coming-of-Age Comedy". IndieWire. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  20. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (December 10, 2021). "'Surfside Girls': Apple TV+ Orders Family Series Starring Miya Cech & YaYa Gosselin Based On Graphic Novel". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on December 10, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  21. ^ Otterson, Joe; Murphy, J Kim (September 20, 2024). "Netflix's 'Avatar: The Last Airbender' Season 2 Casts Miya Cech as Live-Action Toph". Variety. Retrieved September 20, 2024.
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