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This exclusive piece explores extraordinary interviews and narratives from worldwide.

"{I hated that I looked Asian, that I didn't have light-colored eyes and blonde hair, because that's what was beautiful at the time," says Arden Cho, who portrayed Rumi in the streaming platform's chart-topping movie, the K-pop themed animation.

Cho, 40, is describing her early years in Texas, as the eldest daughter of parents who emigrated from Korea 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 evil forces, the protagonist has to accept her true nature as part human, part demon – and when she first read the script, this resonated powerfully.

"Growing up in the US, feeling American but having people treat me like a foreigner, grappling with my identity as an Asian-American, as a Korean-American, as a female," she explains.

These elements were components of her early life that mirrored the character's path.

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

"During childhood, what you see shapes who you become and it seems I just didn't see sufficient individuals that look like me."

When it launched on Netflix in the summer, KPop Demon Hunters achieved millions of streams in just two weeks, and secured the highest positions of the Netflix charts in 93 countries. To be part of the pioneering animation with a Korean setting, with Korean leads, was for Cho "a dream come true" – but it has also made her a powerful role model for young Asian-Americans, the type that was missing when in her youth.

Cho notes many Korean-Americans have told her it's "a breath of fresh air", making them proud for the first time of their dual heritage and cultural roots.

"I feel like K-Pop has genuinely broken barriers. K-beauty has had a significant influence on global appreciation for Korea. But I believe this movie is the one that pushed it further, of, everybody wants to go to Korea, currently," Cho says.

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

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

So, when she accepted the part, she made an effort to meet everyone working on the film in person, she says.

The movie was launched amid heightened enforcement actions in the US as part of extensive removal policies, which triggered demonstrations in numerous regions.

As an person of Asian descent living in the US "it's heartbreaking and disappointing," says Cho. "Immigrants have shaped the nation."

Korean news sources have estimated that up to one hundred fifty thousand individuals from Korea lacking legal status, including adopted children, are among those who could be removed.

As an grown-up, she came to realise that the racism she had experienced when she was younger was largely due to a lack of education, as people didn't know what it meant to be of Asian descent.

"But now, in this day and age, when it seems the world and individuals should know better, it's deeply disheartening and at times I feel like we feel so hopeless," she says.

Because of this, it feels very special, she says, that KPop Demon Hunters could bring "optimism and happiness to all these different communities".

"Perhaps this explains it became this movie of the summer, because we just needed positivity and something to unite us all together."

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

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

"Sure, I believe there will be AI actors and singers. I know they're already here. I know performers' voices are already being altered, but I hope people have some respect and want and love for something real."

The film has also been leading the international music rankings, with multiple songs from its soundtrack featured on the prestigious charts. It has its own fan creations, and viewers around the world are demanding a follow-up.

Cho reveals she would like to confirm the question of whether that will happen – but both everyone involved will have to wait for the streaming service or the production company, which made the film, to approve the project.

"I'm aware rumors are circulating, the feedback is positive," she says. "So we shall see, and I think everyone in the world would riot if there wasn't."

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