The stars of K-pop Demon Hunters (and their parents) are watching your fan edits

Since its release on Netflix this past June, K-pop Demon Hunters has found a passionate audience and a thriving online fandom. The animated action-comedy about a demon-slaying K-pop girl group has inspired fan-made merch, fan art, and group chat-level obsession. While the film leans into the spectacle with stadium-sized bangers and a rival boy group made up of literal soul-sucking demons, it also hits on something real: the deep bond between women, the pressure of being perceived, and the joy of being part of something bigger than yourself. (Not to mention the collective heartbreak over Rumi and Jinu’s tragic, almost-love story.)

It’s a vibe the film’s stars — Arden Cho (Rumi), May Hong (Mira), and Ji-young Yoo (Zoey) — fully understand. During our interview before the film’s release, the three shared their favorite scenes, their girl group dream playlists, and how HUNTR/X mirrors their own friendship dynamic. They talk about their favorite idols (Yoo is a Jihyo girl, of course), how chaotic their group chat is, and the very relatable way their parents stalk their social media.

Just like HUNTR/X, they’re perfectly balanced: the steady center, the stylish enigma, and the lovable maknae. And yes, they’ve seen the edits. (And so have their parents.)

Below, the cast of K-pop Demon Hunters talks about K-pop bias picks, surviving social media, and the power of girl groups on screen and off.

Mashable: Before you signed on to the film, were you already fans of K-pop, or was this kind of like your crash course?

Arden Cho: I’ve always loved K-pop. I’m totally gonna age myself, but all the way from [first generation groups] Fin.K.L, S.E.S., H.O.T., Sechs Kies… Like, oh my gosh.

May Hong: It was more that time for me too.

Cho: Right? This was, like, the beginning, but it was not that cool to like it back then. I was a little bit shy about it. You know, my very first concert ever in life was H.O.T.

That’s amazing.

Ji-young Yoo: That’s iconic, actually. Did you see them in LA or in Korea?

Cho: No, in Korea.

Yoo: That’s so cool.

Cho: I was so excited. But then, back in America, I went to see NSYNC and was like, “Oh yeah, NSYNC is the only boy band I like.” Because it wasn’t cool to like K-pop back then. And I felt insecure about it. But now I’m like, “Oh my gosh, it’s so exciting. K-pop is the best.” Obviously, now, the list [of groups I like] is so long and extensive.

Yoo: I’m a big ARMY. I’ve been an ARMY since 2015, and from following BTS, I began to listen to a lot of other K-pop groups, like past and current groups. So I really enjoy K-pop. It’s a really impressive performance, and everything about it takes so much effort from an artistic perspective, and I really respect that so much. So I’m kind of, like, living out my dreams right now.

Ji-young, you are sitting in front of a purple background, so it’s perfect.

Yoo: A lot of things are working for me here. There’s a lot of purple for this movie, and it’s making me very happy.

Similar to you, Arden, I fell in love with first-gen K-pop. I was downloading BoA’s entire discography in, like, 2006.

Cho: That’s the thing, too. I was covering K-pop songs since the early 2000s. I remember I covered BTS before BTS became BTS. And then I was like, “I told you they were good!” And then, you know, they got huge.

How do you think the film might resonate with K-pop fans? Because I’ve already been seeing all the fan art on social media.

Hong: I saw a lot of talk on Reddit. There are Spotify playlists already dedicated to K-pop Demon Hunters, where people are just gathering their inspiration songs for what they think the energy is like. It seems like a lot of K-pop fans are excited about this.

Cho: I think it helps that the music is incredible. Like, all the songs are hits, they’re bops, they’re so good. And I feel like all the artists and producers who worked on this film with us just crushed it.

Yoo: They’re all such, like, bona fide K-pop producers.

Cho: THEBLACKLABEL really brought it. Some of the songs, I’m like, “Ooh, I can feel a little bit of BLACKPINK.”

Yoo: You can feel a Teddy [Park] touch, definitely.

Cho: It’s so special.

Yoo: I think the fan response is hopefully a sign that we did it right and that we got it right.

Hong: Also, Audrey Nuna [who provides Mira’s singing voice] is so cool. I’m so beyond flattered that that’s Mira.

Cho: There are so many cool people who have helped us also look cool.

Yoo: They make us look so much cooler. It’s really awesome.

Cho: We really can’t take credit for any of that, but, you know, I’m just so honored, and I really hope the K-pop fans see that everybody who worked on this was so respectful, not only to K-pop but also the Korean culture and just everything that comes with it. They’ve captured it in such a magical way.

There are so many nuances that only K-pop fans will understand, like the lightsticks and the variety show scene. I was totally sold when I found out that the villains were a boy band stealing the souls of fans.

Cho: How dare they be so handsome and so evil.

Yoo: A lot of people are posting photos of their favorite idols next to the characters to try and see where we drew inspiration from. I couldn’t answer any of those questions for anybody, but it’s really fun to see, like, similar hairstyles on similar idols, and it’s really cool to watch fans try to figure it out.

Ji-young, I saw you actually living out your K-pop dreams. You did a dance challenge to “Takedown.” That’s true K-pop idol stuff.

Yoo: I did, yeah, it was really fun! I feel so honored to even be halfway in the same conversation as TWICE. That’s just really cool. I think Jihyo is one of the coolest performers ever. All of TWICE is amazing, but I love watching Jihyo. I’m just here for a good time.

Culturally, we’re in the middle of a girl group renaissance, and HUNTR/X is definitely part of that. What is it about the dynamic of a girl group, real or functional, that makes it so compelling for people?

Cho: I just love that they’re all so different, you know? I feel like they have very strong personalities and very distinct styles, whether it be fashion or vibe, and even their artistic style, right? And I love that it’s a mix, and they’re so different, but together, they make this amazing girl group like HUNTR/X.

Hong: There’s nothing more powerful than sisterhood.

Yoo: [Laughs.] No, really.

Hong: Go us.

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Yoo: It’s something even cooler than the sum of their parts, which I think is always really moving. And I think K-pop is all about community, and girl groups and boy bands give a sense of belonging, both within the group and to the fans that are following them. I think we are getting a lot further away from each other, in some ways, because of the internet, and hopefully, art and other things like it can bring people back together.

If you were to build the ultimate girl group playlist, what songs would you put on it?

Yoo: Outside of K-pop, there has to be Destiny’s Child. There has to be Spice Girls. And I would also want some Little Mix on there.

Hong: I obviously want NewJeans there.

Cho: And then I obviously want BLACKPINK. And aespa, too.

Yoo: And then definitely the HUNTR/X songs. And TWICE.

Cho: And LE SSERAFIM. We should throw song GG, some Girls Generation on there.

Yoo: We have to. And Fin.K.L., we need an OG on there.

Cho: There have been so many generations. Oh my goodness.

Yoo: And 2NE1 has to go on there. How long do you want this answer to be? Because we can continue.

You three seem to have a very good dynamic, kind of like your characters. How did you build that chemistry? Was it instant? Do you have an active group chat?

Cho: We made a group chat because we’re all in different places. May’s in New York. Ji-young is in LA, but you were traveling a bit. I was traveling. And so I think the group chat helped.

Yoo: Yeah, the group chat helped, for sure. I knew both of you before we started this project. There’s a little, like, Asian American girls’ brunch that happens in LA every now and then that we met through.

Cho: Some of us older Asian actresses and our cute young maknaes [youngest member of a group].

Yoo: As soon as I heard who the cast was, I knew the vibe was gonna work. And it did. It really didn’t take a lot of effort.

You seem like your characters, too, just from what I’m observing.

Cho: I think you’re right. Casting crushed it. Yeah, yay, Michelle.

I want to hear a little bit more about the group chat.

Yoo: It’s called HUNTR/X.

Cho: May put our cover photo as the animation. It’s so cute.

Yoo: We are the Demon Hunters.

Cho: We are. We’re HUNTR/X. Hello, book us!

Who is the most active? And who’s supplying the memes?

Yoo: I feel like you [points to May] have some really funny photos that you’ll send.

Cho: There are things we can’t really share, but there are some funny texts.

Hong: I think it’s equal, though. We’re all talking. We all really respond.

Cho: It’s fun because it’s all silly things or girl things, like, “Wait, what are you gonna wear? Or what color? What color should we wear?”

Hong: I don’t really do that with people, but because we have to prepare for all this, we’ve just been sending ‘fit pics back and forth.

Cho: We’re also going to see magic tomorrow. We have a girls’ day planned. We’re gonna go see a magician at the Magic Castle [in LA].

Hong: I’m so excited. I’m not going to be like Mira there at all. I’m just so excited to be mesmerized. And I’m not going to be like, oh, do better. I’m just going to be exploding with joy.

Cho: We bond over that because I love magic, and May is always super cool, but once magic came in the picture…

Hong: Not in front of magic, not in the presence of magic.

Were there any lines or scenes that were especially fun or challenging to record?

Yoo: Zoey’s just a fun character in general. Like, every recording session was really funny. They let me ad-lib a lot. So some of that was really fun, and I think a couple of those ended up in the movie. There’s a scene where I’m, like, trying to be cool, but I’m also kind of flirting, and it’s just cute and funny, and I really like doing that. For me, I know it’s a win if I can hear laughter in the booth. There was plenty of that in this movie, because this movie is so funny.

Cho: I think some of my favorite scenes are just when the girls are being goofy and when they’re collecting the pouches, and they’re like, “Oh, they’re not even cute.” Like, that’s literally one of my favorite scenes. On stage, they’re so cool and epic and untouchable. But I feel like when you see the girl under the K-pop idol, it’s so fun. With Rumi, the deeper stuff was pretty challenging. But it was also so fun. All the screaming — so much screaming, cathartic screaming.

Hong: I loved the screaming. I sound like I’ve been screaming into the void. In the studio, it’s cool because there’s no sound bouncing back, so you can really be as loud as you want and release everything.

The film shows how quickly the social media spotlight can shift — HUNTR/X dominates the conversation until the Saja Boys show up. How do you personally navigate your own relationship with social media, especially when it comes to attention or online perception?

Yoo: It’s very different for me because I’m an actor. If social media weren’t, on some level, part of my job, I think it would be a very different kind of interaction. I don’t think about it too much, to be honest, which I’m pretty grateful for. I just go on to, like, do the posts that I must post for work, I check up on my friends, see what they’re up to, and then I go about the rest of my day, and I hope it stays like that. I don’t love being on the phone all the time.

Cho: I think I’m similar. If I wasn’t in this industry, I’m not even sure I’d have social media. But these days, I feel like I have a much healthier relationship with it. I’m not on as much as I used to be, and when I do post, I like sharing things that feel special. I always tell my fans that Instagram is kind of like a highlight reel — cool moments, fun looks, stuff that feels a little elevated. TikTok is where I’m more relaxed and goofy. It feels like there’s less pressure to be perfect there, and you can just do whatever. But I won’t lie — sometimes I still feel the pressure to look a certain way or keep up with trends. I’m always a little late on everything. Like, I just got into Labubu, and apparently that was a whole thing like a year and a half ago! So I’m definitely not always caught up, but maybe that’s part of the fun. All that’s coming up on my feed are Labubus. I only have two, but I want more.

Yoo: I find Labubus scary.

Cho: They’re so cute.

Yoo: No, I find them scary.

Cho: But they’re cute. I have Sesame Bean and Lychee Berry.

Most days, I want to throw my phone into the ocean

Hong: Most days, I want to throw my phone into the ocean. But then I’ll have a silly, goofy mood where I’m actually happy to be online, posting something dumb, keeping up with friends, scrolling through memes. Lately, I’ve been trying to set better boundaries. I started charging my phone outside of my bedroom and got an actual alarm clock, so I’m not immediately doomscrolling first thing in the morning.

Cho: That’s actually super healthy. It’s so good to disconnect. I do that every once in a while. I’ll literally have no phone for a few days.

Yoo: That sounds fun.

Cho: It is super fun, but it’s also a little scary the first couple of times. You have to let a couple of loved ones know so they don’t think something horrible happened. I remember my mom would be like, “You didn’t post anything for a week. Are you OK?”

Hong: Oh my God, my dad has sent that too. And I’m like, I don’t even post like that.

Cho: I’m like, “Oh no, I turned my phone off. I’m sorry.”

Yoo: Are your parents on Instagram?

Cho: My mom is so cute. She checks everything and she likes everything, and she’ll comment, like, “Good job!”

Yoo: Yeah, that’s my dad, too.

Cho: Or she’ll DM me, like, “This is so cute. I’m excited.”

Yoo: My dad has full-on Google search notifications for me.

Hong: Oh my God.

Yoo: I get all my information about myself from him. My dad has been sending fancams of K-pop Demon Hunters.

Cho: Her dad has found some awesome things to send us. He found a rap about us. Her dad is really plugged in, so he’s pretty much our social media link.

K-pop Demon Hunters is now streaming on Netflix.