KPop Demon Hunters stars excited about Oscar chances, but feel they have ‘already won’

LOS ANGELES – Arden Cho needs a real-life Huntrix jet.

The actress, who voices the lead character of K-pop star Rumi in the hit Netflix animated movie KPop Demon Hunters (2025), has been zipping around the world in the light of the show’s popularity.

This week alone, she was in Milan, South Korea, San Francisco and now back in Los Angeles, the 40-year-old told The Straits Times on the red carpet of the Unforgettable Awards, which celebrates Asian and Pacific Islander excellence in film, television and culture. It was held on March 7 at Fairmont Century Plaza hotel in Los Angeles.

“I feel like I’ve been on a flight almost every day, but I am just super grateful for this opportunity and this moment,” said the Korean-American star, who is heading to the Oscars ceremony for the first time, which takes place on March 15.

Cho had originally auditioned for the role of Celine, a former demon hunter and the maternal figure in the film, but then got the callback to audition for Rumi. “I mean, what a gift,” she added.

KPop Demon Hunters, about the demon-fighting K-pop girl group Huntrix, is up for two Academy Awards – Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song (Golden). It has already secured two Golden Globes in those same categories.

It has also been crowned the most popular film on streaming service Netflix, with more than 300 million views.

Slaying the red carpet with Cho were castmates Ji-young Yoo, 26, who voices Huntrix member Zoey, and Kevin Woo, 34, formerly from K-pop boy band U-Kiss, who provides the singing voice of Mystery from the demonic boy band Saja Boys.

Looking back at the process of making the film, Yoo said she was able to add some personal touches to her character. “I had a lot of fun and they let me improvise a lot.”

One instance is when Zoey says, “I’m not sitting next to no Saja boy”, then turns to one who plops down next to her, giggles, smiles and says: “What’s up?”

“They wrote most of the line, but that ‘what’s up’ was me,” said the Korean-American actress, who, together with Cho, accepted the Vanguard Award on behalf of KPop Demon Hunters. The award honours those pioneering or leading the way for Asian and Asian-American representation in entertainment, media and culture.

Said Yoon on stage: “Along with being a love letter to Korean culture and the power of music, KPop Demon Hunters explores the pressure of perfectionism, generational trauma and the struggle to balance who you are, and who the world expects you to be - things I’m sure no one in this room can relate to, I know I never have.”

On a more serious note, she added: “Every person in this room has passed down wisdom, inspired the world with their talent and helped to create an industry where KPop Demon Hunters can exist.”

Now in its 23rd edition and presented by entertainment platform GoldenTV and media company Character Media, the Unforgettable Awards was graced by other top talent in the industry such as actor-comedian Bowen Yang, writer-director Chloe Zhao and popular digital creators like Leenda Dong and Steven He.

Zhao, 43, who received the Global Icon Award for her work on the movies Nomadland (2020), Eternals (2021) and Hamnet (2025), paid homage to her Chinese heritage in her acceptance speech.

“I’m very proud to be Chinese. Wisdoms of my ancestors are not lost on me. I work very hard every day to rediscover it and remember it,” she said.

Accepting his award for Actor in Film for the romantic comedy The Wedding Banquet (2025), Yang, 35, talked about the change in attitudes towards Asians and Pacific Islanders in the industry.

“I’m so happy and lucky that it is starting to change now because of rooms like this, because of events like Unforgettable, where we can see each other and go from the third person to the first with ourselves,” says Yang. His credits include Wicked musical movies (2024 and 2025) and sketch series Saturday Night Live (1975 to present).

GoldenTV chief executive Takashi Cheng agreed that creating opportunities for the Asian and Pacific Islander communities to celebrate each other can help “show the next generation that things are achievable, regardless of the colour of your skin”.

This year, global creator management and licensing company Gushcloud International, which was founded in Singapore, became the award show’s first global partner.

Said Mr Cheng: “The plan is to broaden this where we can and have partnerships with Singapore, Taiwan, African nations, with all other countries, so that we can cross-pollinate and share stories.”

Excited about the recent wave of interest in Asian stories, Cho said: “I really feel like now is the time and I hope that KPop Demon Hunters opens and continues to open more doors for us in our stories and our voices.”

So does that mean fans will hear more from her in the sequel?

“We’ll see about that,” she replied. For now, “we’re just very, very excited about the Oscars”.

Added Korean-American singer-host Woo: “Regardless of the outcome, I feel like we’ve already won, you know, just the hearts of many around the world.”