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"{I hated that I had Asian features, that I didn't have blue eyes and blonde hair, because that's what was beautiful back then," reveals Arden Cho, who portrayed the lead character in Netflix's highly successful movie, the K-pop themed animation.

The performer, forty, recalls her early years in Texas, as the firstborn child of Korean immigrant parents and her struggle for acceptance in the United States.

In the movie, which narrates the tale of a girl group who must rescue humanity from dark powers, Rumi has to accept her identity as a hybrid being – and when she first read the script, this resonated powerfully.

"Being born in America, identifying as American but having others view me like a foreigner, grappling with my identity as an Korean-American, as a Asian-American, as a woman," she explains.

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

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

"As kids, your surroundings shapes your development and it seems I lacked exposure to enough people that shared my appearance."

When it debuted on the platform in June, the animated feature registered millions of streams in just two weeks, and reached the top 10 of the Netflix charts in dozens of nations. To be part of the pioneering animation with a Korean setting, with Korean leads, was for Cho "an aspiration realized" – but it has also made her a powerful role model for Asian-American children, the kind that was missing when in her youth.

Cho says many individuals of Korean descent have expressed it's "such a refreshing moment", making them proud for the first instance of their dual heritage and cultural roots.

"I feel like Korean pop music has genuinely broken barriers. Korean cosmetics has had a significant influence on global appreciation for Korea. But I feel like the film is the one that pushed it further, of, everybody wants to go to Korea, now," Cho says.

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

"I feel like it's unfortunate to mention this, but any time there's an production with Asian leads, it's perceived like it's a risk," she reveals.

So, when she took on the role, she made an effort to connect with everyone working on the film in person, she says.

The movie was released amid 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 residing in America "it's deeply saddening," she states. "Immigrants have shaped the nation."

Korean news sources have estimated 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 experienced when she was younger stemmed mainly from a lack of education, as people didn't know what it meant to be Korean or Asian.

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

Due to this, it feels very special, she notes, that the film could bring "hope and joy and love to various groups".

"Maybe that's why it became the season's hit film, because there was a need for some hope and something to unite us as one."

The advancement of artificial intelligence is a significant worry for the film industry, creating the potential that in coming years it could be used to make a movie like the animation.

The actress says she is conscious that technology is already being used to replicate performers' vocals, but aims to "have hope in humanity" that individuals will still pursue human-made creativity.

"Sure, I believe there will be AI actors and vocalists. I know they're already here. I know performers' voices are already being manipulated, but I trust the public have appreciation and want and love for authentic creations."

KPop Demon Hunters has also been leading the international music rankings, with seven tracks from its score featured on the Billboard Hot 100. It has its own fan creations, and viewers around the world are demanding a sequel.

Cho tells us she would like to confirm the inquiry of whether that will happen – but both she and fans will have to wait for the streaming service or the production company, which made the film, to give it the green light.

"I'm aware rumors are circulating, the feedback is positive," she says. "Only time will tell, and I believe everyone in the world would protest if there wasn't."

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