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"{I disliked that I had Asian features, that I lacked blue eyes and fair hair, because that's what was beautiful back then," reveals Arden Cho, who portrayed the lead character in the streaming platform's chart-topping animated film, KPop Demon Hunters.

The performer, forty, recalls her early years in the southern state, as the firstborn child of parents who emigrated from Korea and her struggle for acceptance in American society.

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

"Being born in America, feeling American but having others view me like I'm not, grappling with my identity as an Korean-American, as a Korean-American, as a woman," she explains.

These were all aspects of her early life that mirrored the character's path.

"Truthfully, at various stages in my life, I despised many parts of me and I longed to become a different person.

"During childhood, your surroundings influences who you become and it seems I lacked exposure to sufficient individuals that look like me."

When it debuted on the platform in June, the animated feature achieved 33 million views in just 14 days, and reached the highest positions of the streaming rankings in 93 countries. To be part of the first Hollywood animated film set in Korea, with Korean leads, was for Cho "an aspiration realized" – but it has also made her a powerful role model for Asian-American children, the type that was missing when in her youth.

Cho says many individuals of Korean descent have expressed it's "a breath of fresh air", making them proud for the first time of their dual heritage and culture.

"I feel like K-Pop really, truly, has paved the way. K-beauty 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, currently," she comments.

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 kind of sucks to say this, but any time there's an production with Asian leads, people feel like a gamble," she reveals.

So, when she accepted the part, she took steps to meet everyone working on the film face-to-face, she says.

The film was released amid heightened enforcement actions in the US as part of mass deportation efforts, which sparked protests in numerous regions.

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

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

As an grown-up, Cho came to realise that the prejudice she had experienced when in her youth was largely due to a lack of education, as many were unaware what it signified to be Korean or Asian.

"However today, in the modern era, when I feel like the world and individuals should know better, it's deeply disheartening and sometimes I feel like we feel so hopeless," she expresses.

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

"Maybe that's why it's sort of like the season's hit film, because there was a need for some hope and a unifying element all together."

The growth of AI is a major concern for the entertainment sector, creating the potential that in future it could be used to produce a film like the animation.

The actress acknowledges she is aware that technology 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 already exist. I understand our voices are already being manipulated, but I hope people have some respect and desire for authentic creations."

The film has also been dominating the global music charts, with multiple songs from its soundtrack featured on the Billboard Hot 100. It has its own fan creations, and audiences around the world are demanding a follow-up.

She 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 studio, which produced the movie, to approve the project.

"I'm aware there's lots of murmurs, I've heard wonderful things," she shares. "Only time will tell, and I think fans everywhere would riot if there wasn't."

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