🔗 Share this article

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

"{I disliked that I looked Asian, that I lacked light-colored eyes and blonde hair, because those were the beauty standards at the time," says the actress, who portrayed Rumi in Netflix's highly successful movie, KPop Demon Hunters.

Cho, forty, recalls her childhood in Texas, as the eldest daughter of Korean immigrant parents and her struggle for acceptance in the United States.

In the film, which narrates the tale of a female K-Pop trio who must save the world from evil forces, Rumi has to come to terms with her identity as part human, part demon – and when she first read the script, this resonated powerfully.

"Being born in America, identifying as American but having people treat me like I'm not, grappling with my identity as an Korean-American, as a Korean-American, as a woman," she says.

These were all aspects of her formative years that mirrored Rumi's journey.

"I can honestly say, at different points in my life, I despised a lot of myself and I longed to become someone else.

"As kids, what you see influences who you become and I feel like I lacked exposure to enough people that look like me."

When it debuted on the platform in June, KPop Demon Hunters achieved millions of streams in just two weeks, and reached the highest positions of the Netflix charts in 93 countries. To star in the first Hollywood animated film set in Korea, with Asian protagonists, was for Cho "an aspiration realized" – but it has also made her a powerful role model for Asian-American children, the type that she lacked when in her youth.

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

"I feel like Korean pop music really, truly, has paved the way. K-beauty has had such a big impact on Korea being loved. But I believe the film is the one that tipped it over the edge, of, everybody wants to go to Korea, now," she comments.

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

"I feel like it's unfortunate to say this, but any time there's an Asian-led project, it's perceived like it's a risk," 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 amid heightened enforcement actions in the United States as part of extensive removal policies, which triggered demonstrations in numerous regions.

As an person of Asian descent residing in America "it's heartbreaking and disappointing," she states. "Immigrants have shaped the nation."

Reports have estimated 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 grown-up, she understood that the racism she had encountered when she was younger stemmed mainly from a lack of education, as people didn't know what it meant to be of Asian descent.

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

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

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

The actress says she is conscious that AI is already being used to copy actors' voices, but aims to "have hope in humanity" that audiences will still seek out human-made creativity.

"Certainly, I believe they're going to have AI actors and vocalists. I know they're already here. I know performers' voices are already being manipulated, but I hope the public have appreciation and desire for something real."

KPop Demon Hunters has also been leading the global music charts, with seven tracks from its score appearing in the Billboard Hot 100. It has its own fan art, and viewers globally are demanding a follow-up.

Cho tells us she wishes she could answer the question of if a sequel is planned – but both everyone involved will have to await the streaming service or the studio, which made the film, to give it the green light.

"I'm aware there's lots of murmurs, the feedback is positive," she shares. "Only time will tell, and I believe everyone in the world would riot if there wasn't."

• Initiating discussions, building connections and challenging misinformation through articles, investigations, interviews and extraordinary stories