Animated Film KPop Demon Hunters Actress Reveals The Ways Her Personal Path Reflected Main Character's Story

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"{I disliked that I looked Asian, that I lacked light-colored eyes and fair hair, because that's what was beautiful back then," reveals Arden Cho, who voiced the lead character in Netflix's highly successful animated film, the K-pop themed animation.

Cho, 40, recalls her childhood in Texas, as the firstborn child of Korean immigrant parents and her struggle for acceptance in the United States.

In the film, which narrates the tale of a girl group 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 resonated powerfully.

"Growing up in the US, feeling American but having people treat me like a foreigner, trying to figure out my identity as an Asian-American, as a Korean-American, as a woman," she says.

These elements were components of her early life that paralleled Rumi's journey.

"I can honestly say, at different points in my life, I hated many parts of me and I wanted to be a different person.

"As kids, what you see influences who you become and it seems I lacked exposure to sufficient individuals that look like me."

When it launched on Netflix in the summer, the animated feature achieved millions of streams in just 14 days, and secured the highest positions of the streaming rankings in dozens of nations. To star in the first Hollywood animated film set in Korea, with Korean leads, was for her "an aspiration realized" – but it has also established her as a powerful role model for Asian-American children, the type that she lacked when she was young.

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

"I feel like Korean pop music really, truly, has paved the way. Korean cosmetics has had such a big impact on Korea being loved. But I feel like this movie is the one that pushed it further, of, inspiring travel to Korea, now," Cho says.

But the film's success was uncertain and Cho says she felt the production crew were "occasionally struggling against odds".

"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 took steps to meet everyone working on the film in person, she says.

The film was launched against the backdrop of increased immigration raids in the US as part of mass deportation efforts, which triggered demonstrations in many states.

As an person of Asian descent residing in America "it's deeply saddening," she states. "Newcomers have made America what it is."

Korean news sources have suggested that up to one hundred fifty thousand individuals from Korea without proper documentation, including those who were adopted, are among those who could be removed.

As an adult, Cho came to realise that the prejudice she had experienced when in her youth was largely due to a knowledge gap, as people didn't know what it meant to be of Asian descent.

"However today, in this day and age, when I feel like the world and individuals should know better, it is beyond disappointing and sometimes I feel like there's a sense of despair," she expresses.

Due to this, it's particularly meaningful, she notes, that KPop Demon Hunters could bring "hope and joy and love to all these different communities".

"Perhaps this explains it became this movie of the summer, because we just needed positivity and a unifying element as one."

The growth of AI is a significant worry for the film industry, raising the possibility that in coming years it could be used to produce a film like the animation.

The actress acknowledges she is conscious that technology is already being used to copy performers' vocals, but wants to "have hope in humanity" that individuals will still pursue art created by humans.

"Sure, I believe there will be digital performers and vocalists. I'm aware they already exist. I understand our voices are already being manipulated, but I hope people have some respect and desire for something real."

KPop Demon Hunters has also been dominating the global music charts, with seven tracks from its soundtrack appearing in the prestigious charts. It has its own fan art, and audiences globally are calling for a sequel.

She reveals she wishes she could answer the question of whether that will happen – but both everyone involved will have to wait for the platform or the production company, which made the film, to approve the project.

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

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