To call KPop Demon Hunters a success story is an understatement. The 2025 Netflix release has taken the world by storm. The internet is obsessed with its soundtrack, and it's the most-watched movie in Netflix history. But one of the stars, Arden Cho, got real about what “the greatest part of the success” is of her animated movie.
Since KPop Demon Hunters is considered the movie of the summer, this could mean more possible follow-up projects that’ll keep Huntr/x alive on our streaming schedule for a while. However, Cho, who voiced Rumi in the Netflix flick, told Deadline the following about what she really appreciates from KPop's success:
The wave of love and support for KPop Demon Hunters has been truly incredible. I think the greatest part of the success is showing the world that culturally specific stories, new IP, and Asian leads, are not something to be scared of. I think quite often there’s this pressure that you have to have a big star leading a film for it to be successful.
While it’s a traditional theory that bankable stars will ensure a movie’s success, there have been many examples of movies scoring big without well-known leads. Sylvester Stallone wasn’t famous until he starred in his self-written movie Rocky, as well as Nia Vardalos with her screenplay of My Big Fat Greek Wedding. The team behind KPop Demon Hunters should be very proud that they’ve achieved the same victory.
As Arden Cho said, the success of the musical-fantasy movie has proven once again that Asian cinema can reach global audiences. Hilarious rom-coms with Asian-American leads have commanded the box office and streaming numbers like Crazy Rich Asians, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, Always Be My Maybe and more.
Even the Asian-led A24 movie Everything Everywhere All At Once became a 2023 Oscar winner for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Original Screenplay and Best Editing. With more Asian leads being featured in wide-scaled movies, these stories prove to have universal appeal.
Arden Cho’s film career doesn’t plan to be limited to KPop Demon Hunters and its possible future installments. She’ll be starring in another KPop-themed project titled Perfect Girl, where a new KPop group is under attack after a talented new performer enters the picture. The Texas-born actress continued about how she felt the world sees Asian-American stars and how her 2025 movie release changed that:
Oftentimes, as Asian Americans, we’re kind of seen as a risky investment or a risky project, but I think the success of KPop Demon Hunters shows us that maybe we’re not a risk anymore. Maybe people really love our stories. So, I’ve been very confident about Perfect Girl since I’ve known about the project.
As Perfect Girl has been described as “Scream meets Black Swan,” I don’t see how we can go wrong, as both of those movies have been triumphs. By allowing Asian leads to bring these stories to life, these stars can become household names within the genre and prove that people of any nationality can become fans of a great movie.
With Arden Cho’s career going nowhere but up, the actress has expressed a dream she’d like to achieve with her newfound fame:
I feel like I’m sort of stepping into this era where I want to be like a big sister to a lot of like the younger Asian-American talent and the Asian talent. I feel like it’s something I didn’t have in the beginning stages of my career. And I feel that fits with that message of KPop Demon Hunters, which is all about doing it together.
That’s very true, as Rumi couldn’t defeat the demons in her life with just her voice and fighting skills. She needed the power of her bandmates, Mira and Zoey, to help her. If Arden Cho could use her fame to help others with the same dream as her, it’s a legacy that will strengthen Asian representation in big movies.
KPop Demon Hunters may have achieved big numbers in streaming and was a weekend box office hit when it was released in theaters. But according to Arden Cho, its “greatest” success lay in showing Asian leads do not provide a risk in a movie’s success if its story shows promise and can inspire other upcoming Asian stars to join big projects. See what everyone’s talking about by watching the animated musical movie with your Netflix subscription.
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