Arden Cho says she spent decades struggling to feel proud of being Asian
By Ryan General
9 hours ago
“KPop Demon Hunters” star Arden Cho said growing up Asian American left her questioning her appearance, identity and place within the culture around her. During a May 3 conversation at Stanford University’s annual “Listen to the Silence” conference, Cho
Learning to be seen
Speaking at the event hosted by the Asian American Students Association and Stanford Speakers Bureau, Cho recalled growing up without seeing Asian women reflected in the beauty standards surrounding her. “I grew up feeling like there was a standard of beauty, and I wasn’t it,” she said.
Cho has previously reflected on wanting to look like the people she saw represented as beautiful in American culture. “I hated that I looked Asian, that I didn’t have blue eyes and blonde hair, because that’s what was beautiful at the time,” she said in a Nov. interview with the BBC.
During the Stanford event, the 40-year-old Korean American actress described being raised to avoid outward displays of emotion, something that later conflicted with the vulnerability acting demanded from her. “I was always told to be perfect and to not be so big with your emotions,” she said. “Acting is interesting, because like an onion, you want to peel all the layers back to really get to that core.”
Rather than separating identity from performance, she described the work as forcing her to confront insecurities she had spent years trying to hide. “I see young girls who are like, ‘Oh my gosh, I love being Asian. I love being Korean,’” Cho said. “It took me 30 years to feel that.”
Saying no in Hollywood
Early career opportunities often placed Cho in situations where she had to decide whether a role aligned with how she wanted Asian Americans portrayed onscreen. “The first 15 years of my career was saying no in a lot of tough situations,” she said. “There were a lot of opportunities, but there were things that I just felt like, ‘I don’t know if this helps us as Asian Americans.’”
She criticized what she described as an “overcorrecting” approach to representation that still confines Asian actors to narrowly defined identities. “I became an actor because I want to tell stories and step into other people’s shoes, and do these fun things,” she said. “I don’t want to keep playing a 30-year-old Korean girl.”
That frustration resurfaced while filming Netflix’s “Partner Track,” where Cho played attorney Ingrid Yun in one of the platform’s few series led by an Asian American woman. She noted that the role was “triggering” because of how closely Ingrid’s experiences mirrored her own career in entertainment. After the show was canceled following one season, Cho shared that she “pretty much quit [acting].”
Returning through Rumi
Cho said the success of Netflix’s animated film “KPop Demon Hunters,” in which she voices lead character Rumi, drew her back into acting after stepping away from the industry.
The actress also spoke about the anxiety she experienced while promoting the film, including panic attacks during press appearances and red carpet events. “Nobody trains you for this,” she said. Emphasizing the collaborative work behind the character, she credited the film’s animators, artists and singer Kim “Ejae” Eun-jae, who provided Rumi’s singing voice. “[Rumi] would have been different with someone else,” she said.
Cho, who is also known for her roles in (2018) “The Honor List,” MTV’s “Teen Wolf” and “Chicago Med,” among others, is also attached to the upcoming projects “Perfect Girl” and “Cheap AF,” both currently in post-production.
This story is part of The Rebel Yellow Newsletter — a bold weekly newsletter from the creators of NextShark, reclaiming our stories and celebrating Asian American voices.
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