🔗 Share this article

This feature delves into remarkable conversations and stories from worldwide.

"{I disliked that I had Asian features, that I lacked blue eyes and fair hair, because that's what was beautiful at the time," reveals Arden Cho, who portrayed Rumi in the streaming platform's highly successful animated film, the K-pop themed animation.

Cho, forty, recalls her childhood in the southern state, as the eldest daughter of parents who emigrated from Korea and her journey toward belonging in the United States.

In the film, which narrates the tale of a female K-Pop trio who must rescue humanity from evil forces, Rumi has to accept her true nature as a hybrid being – and when Cho first read the script, this struck a deep chord.

"Growing up in the US, identifying as American but having others view me like I'm not, grappling with my identity as an Asian-American, as a Asian-American, as a female," she explains.

These were all components of her formative years that paralleled Rumi's journey.

"Truthfully, at different points in my existence, I hated many parts of me and I wanted to be a different person.

"During childhood, your surroundings influences who you become and I feel like I just didn't see sufficient individuals that shared my appearance."

When it launched on Netflix in the summer, KPop Demon Hunters registered 33 million views in just two weeks, and secured the highest positions of the Netflix charts in 93 countries. To star in the pioneering animation with a Korean setting, with Asian protagonists, was for Cho "a dream come true" – but it has also established her as a powerful role model for young Asian-Americans, the kind that she lacked when she was young.

She says many Korean-Americans have expressed it's "a breath of fresh air", making them feel pride for the first instance of their mixed background and culture.

"In my view K-Pop has genuinely broken barriers. K-beauty has had such a big impact on global appreciation for Korea. But I feel like this movie is the one that tipped it over the edge, of, inspiring travel to Korea, now," she comments.

But the film's success was uncertain and Cho admits she felt the production crew were "sometimes facing an uphill battle".

"I feel like it's unfortunate to say this, but whenever there's an Asian-led project, it's perceived like a gamble," she reveals.

So, when she took on the role, she made an effort to meet the entire cast and crew face-to-face, she says.

The film was launched against the backdrop of increased immigration raids in the United States as part of mass deportation efforts, which triggered demonstrations 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."

Korean news sources have suggested that up to one hundred fifty thousand Korean immigrants lacking legal status, including adopted children, are among those who could be removed.

As an adult, she understood that the racism she had encountered when she was younger was largely due to a lack of education, as many were unaware what it meant to be of Asian descent.

"But now, in this day and age, when it seems the society and people ought to be more informed, it is beyond disappointing and at times I feel like there's a sense of despair," she says.

Due to this, it's particularly meaningful, she notes, that the film could bring "hope and joy and love to various groups".

"Maybe that's why it's sort of like this movie of the summer, because we just needed some hope and a unifying element as one."

The growth of AI is a major concern for the film industry, creating the potential that in coming years it could be used to make a film like KPop Demon Hunters.

The actress says she is aware that AI is already being used to replicate actors' voices, but aims to "maintain faith in people" that individuals will still pursue human-made creativity.

"Sure, I'm sure there will be digital performers and vocalists. I know they already exist. I know performers' voices are already being manipulated, but I trust the public have some respect and desire for authentic creations."

The film has also been leading the global music charts, with seven tracks from its score featured on the Billboard Hot 100. It has its own fan art, and audiences around the world are demanding a follow-up.

Cho reveals she would like to confirm the inquiry of whether that will happen – but both everyone involved will have to wait for the platform or the studio, which produced the movie, to approve the project.

"I know rumors are circulating, I've heard wonderful things," she says. "So we shall see, and I believe fans everywhere would riot if it didn't happen."

• Initiating discussions, building connections and combating false narratives through articles, investigations, conversations and extraordinary stories