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"{I disliked that I had Asian features, that I didn't have light-colored eyes and fair hair, because those were the beauty standards back then," says Arden Cho, who voiced Rumi in Netflix's highly successful animated film, the K-pop themed animation.

The performer, 40, recalls her early years in Texas, as the firstborn child of parents who emigrated from Korea and her journey toward belonging in the United States.

In the movie, which tells the story 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 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 Korean-American, as a female," she explains.

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

"Truthfully, at different points in my life, I hated a lot of myself and I longed to become a different person.

"During childhood, what you see influences who you become and I feel like I just didn't see sufficient individuals that shared my appearance."

When it launched on Netflix in June, KPop Demon Hunters achieved 33 million views in just 14 days, and secured the highest positions of the streaming rankings in dozens of nations. To star in the first Hollywood animated film set in Korea, with Korean leads, was for her "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 Korean-Americans have told her it's "such a refreshing moment", making them feel pride for the first time of their dual heritage and culture.

"In my view Korean pop music really, truly, has paved the way. K-beauty has had a significant influence on global appreciation for Korea. But I believe this movie is the one that tipped it over the edge, of, everybody wants to go to Korea, currently," Cho says.

But the film's success was not guaranteed and the actress says she felt the team making it were "sometimes facing an uphill battle".

"I feel like it kind of sucks to mention this, but whenever there's an Asian-led project, people feel like it's a risk," she reveals.

So, when she took on the role, she took steps to connect with everyone working on the film face-to-face, she says.

The movie was launched amid heightened enforcement actions in the US as part of extensive removal policies, which sparked protests in many states.

As an person of Asian descent residing in America "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 deported.

As an grown-up, she understood that the racism she had encountered when she was younger stemmed mainly from a knowledge gap, as people didn't know what it signified to be Korean or Asian.

"However today, in the modern era, when I feel like the society and individuals ought to be more informed, it's deeply disheartening and at times it appears there's a sense of despair," she says.

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

"Maybe that's why it became this movie of the summer, because there was a need for some hope and a unifying element all together."

The advancement of artificial intelligence is a major concern for the film industry, creating the potential that in future it could be used to produce a movie like the animation.

The actress acknowledges she is aware that AI is already being used to copy performers' vocals, but wants to "maintain faith in people" that audiences will still pursue human-made creativity.

"Sure, I'm sure there will be AI actors and vocalists. I know they already exist. I know our voices are already being altered, but I trust people have some respect and want and love for something real."

KPop Demon Hunters 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 viewers around the world are calling for a sequel.

She tells us she would like to confirm the question of whether that will happen – but both she and fans will have to wait for the platform or the studio, which produced the movie, to approve the project.

"I know there's lots of murmurs, I've heard wonderful things," she says. "So we shall see, and I think everyone in the world would protest if it didn't happen."

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