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This exclusive piece explores extraordinary interviews and narratives from around the globe.

"{I hated that I looked Asian, that I lacked blue eyes and fair hair, because that's what was beautiful back then," says Arden Cho, who portrayed Rumi in the streaming platform's chart-topping movie, KPop Demon Hunters.

Cho, forty, recalls her early years in Texas, as the firstborn child of Korean immigrant parents and her journey toward belonging in the United States.

In the movie, which tells the story of a girl group who must rescue humanity from dark powers, Rumi has to accept her true nature as a hybrid being – and when Cho first saw the screenplay, this resonated powerfully.

"Being born in America, identifying as American but having people treat me like a foreigner, trying to figure out my sense of self as an Korean-American, as a Asian-American, as a female," she explains.

These were all components of her formative years that mirrored the character's path.

"Truthfully, at different points in my existence, I hated a lot of myself and I longed to become someone else.

"As kids, your surroundings shapes who you become and it seems I just didn't see sufficient individuals that look like me."

When it debuted on the platform in the summer, the animated feature registered 33 million views in just 14 days, and secured the highest positions of the streaming rankings in dozens of nations. To star in the pioneering animation with a Korean setting, with Korean leads, was for her "an aspiration realized" – but it has also established her as a inspiring figure for young Asian-Americans, the kind that she lacked when in her youth.

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

"In my view Korean pop music has genuinely broken barriers. K-beauty has had such a big impact on global appreciation for Korea. But I believe the film is the one that tipped it over the edge, of, inspiring travel to Korea, now," Cho says.

But the movie's triumph was uncertain and Cho says she felt the production crew were "sometimes facing an uphill battle".

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

So, when she accepted the part, she made an effort to meet the entire cast and crew face-to-face, she says.

The film was released amid heightened enforcement actions in the US as part of mass deportation efforts, which triggered demonstrations in many states.

As an Asian-American residing in America "it's deeply saddening," she states. "Immigrants have shaped the nation."

Korean news sources have estimated that up to 150,000 individuals from Korea lacking legal status, including those who were adopted, are among those who could be removed.

As an grown-up, she understood that the racism she had encountered when she was younger was largely due to a knowledge gap, as many were unaware what it signified to be of Asian descent.

"But now, in the modern era, when it seems the society and people should know better, it's deeply disheartening and sometimes I feel like we feel so hopeless," she says.

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

"Maybe that's why it became the season's hit film, because we just needed some hope and a unifying element all together."

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 film like KPop Demon Hunters.

Cho acknowledges she is aware that AI is already being used to replicate performers' vocals, but wants to "have hope in humanity" that individuals will still seek out art created by humans.

"Sure, I'm sure there will be AI actors and singers. I know they're already here. I understand performers' voices are already being manipulated, but I trust people have appreciation and want and love for something real."

The film has also been dominating the international music rankings, with multiple songs from its score appearing in the Billboard Hot 100. It has its own fan art, and audiences around the world are demanding a follow-up.

Cho tells us she wishes she could answer the inquiry of whether that will happen – but both everyone involved will have to await the platform or the studio, which made the film, to give it the green light.

"I know there's lots of murmurs, I've heard wonderful things," she says. "So we shall see, and I think fans everywhere would riot if it didn't happen."

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