🔗 Share this article

This exclusive piece delves into remarkable conversations and stories from worldwide.

"{I disliked that I had Asian features, that I lacked light-colored eyes and fair hair, because those were the beauty standards back then," says Arden Cho, who portrayed Rumi in the streaming platform's chart-topping movie, the K-pop themed animation.

Cho, forty, recalls her early years in Texas, as the firstborn child of Korean immigrant parents and her struggle for acceptance in American society.

In the movie, which tells the story of a female K-Pop trio who must save the world from dark powers, the protagonist has to accept her identity as a hybrid being – and when she first saw the screenplay, this struck a deep chord.

"Being born in America, feeling American but having others view me like I'm not, grappling with my sense of self as an Asian-American, as a Korean-American, as a female," she explains.

These were all aspects of her early life that mirrored Rumi's journey.

"Truthfully, at different points in my life, I hated a lot of myself and I wanted to be a different person.

"As kids, your surroundings influences who you become and I feel like I lacked exposure to sufficient individuals that look like me."

When it launched on Netflix in the summer, KPop Demon Hunters registered millions of streams in just 14 days, and secured the highest positions of the Netflix charts in dozens of nations. To be part of the first Hollywood animated film set in Korea, with Asian protagonists, was for her "a dream come true" – but it has also made her a powerful role model for young Asian-Americans, the type that she lacked when in her youth.

Cho notes many Korean-Americans have told her it's "such a refreshing moment", making them feel pride for the first time of their dual heritage and culture.

"In my view K-Pop really, truly, has paved the way. Korean cosmetics has had a significant influence on global appreciation for Korea. But I feel like this movie is the one that pushed it further, of, inspiring travel to Korea, currently," Cho says.

But the movie's triumph was not guaranteed and Cho says she felt the team making it were "sometimes facing an uphill battle".

"I feel like it kind of sucks to say this, but whenever there's an Asian-led project, people feel like a gamble," she says.

So, when she accepted the part, she took steps to connect with the entire cast and crew in person, she adds.

The film was launched against the backdrop of heightened enforcement actions in the US as part of mass deportation efforts, which sparked protests in numerous regions.

As an person of Asian descent living in the US "it's heartbreaking and disappointing," says Cho. "Newcomers have shaped the nation."

Reports have estimated that up to 150,000 individuals from Korea without proper documentation, including those who were adopted, are among those who could be deported.

As an grown-up, she understood that the prejudice she had experienced when in her youth stemmed mainly from a knowledge gap, as people didn't know what it signified to be Korean or Asian.

"But now, in the modern era, when I feel like the world and individuals ought to be more informed, it is beyond disappointing and sometimes it appears there's a sense of despair," she says.

Because of this, it's particularly meaningful, she notes, that the film could bring "hope and joy and love to all these different communities".

"Maybe that's why it's sort of like this movie of the summer, because there was a need for some hope and something to unite us as one."

The advancement of artificial intelligence is a major concern for the entertainment sector, creating the potential that in coming years it could be used to make a movie like the animation.

The actress acknowledges she is aware that technology is already being used to copy actors' voices, but wants to "maintain faith in people" that audiences will still pursue art created by humans.

"Sure, I'm sure there will be AI actors and singers. I know they're already here. I know performers' voices are already being altered, but I hope people have some respect and desire for authentic creations."

The film has also been leading the international music rankings, with multiple songs from its score appearing in the prestigious charts. It has its own fan creations, and viewers around the world are demanding a follow-up.

She tells us she wishes she could answer the question of if a sequel is planned – but both everyone involved will have to wait for the platform or the studio, which produced the movie, to give it the green light.

"I'm aware rumors are circulating, I've heard wonderful things," she shares. "So we shall see, and I believe everyone in the world would protest if there wasn't."

• Initiating discussions, building connections and combating false narratives through features, investigations, interviews and remarkable accounts