{"id":304290,"date":"2026-02-18T13:14:07","date_gmt":"2026-02-18T13:14:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/304290\/"},"modified":"2026-02-18T13:14:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-18T13:14:07","slug":"kpop-demon-hunters-cast-on-how-they-slayed-their-own-demons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/304290\/","title":{"rendered":"‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Cast on How They Slayed Their Own Demons"},"content":{"rendered":"

Just when you thought every angle on KPop Demon Hunters<\/a> had been covered\u2014until the much-anticipated sequel<\/a>\u00a0drops, whenever that may be<\/a>\u2014a new perspective arrives. For the first time since the Netflix movie\u2019s release last summer, across record-setting viewing and soundtrack numbers and awards nominations galore, the six performers behind Rumi, Mira, and Zoey did an interview all together.<\/p>\n

Variety<\/a> gathered together EJAE (singing voice of Rumi, also one of the movie\u2019s songwriters); Arden Cho (speaking voice of Rumi); Audrey Nuna (singing voice of Mira); May Hong (speaking voice of Mira); Rei Ami (singing voice of Zoey); and Ji-young Yoo (speaking voice of Zoey). Many shared their audition stories, which go back several years in some cases and include anecdotes like Cho originally going out for the supporting character of Celine rather than the main character of Rumi.<\/p>\n

But of particular interest are the cast\u2019s insights into how the movie\u2019s story\u2014about pop-music superstars who secretly keep the world safe from demons\u2014has parallels in their own careers. Several of the women mentioned they had to do some (metaphorical) demon-slaying along the way, and how gratifying it is to see the success of KPop Demon Hunters reflect that hard work.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been told we were too little, too much. Every step of my career,\u201d Ami said. \u201cAll the demons I have to personally fight and be like, \u2018You know what? You are the bitch. You are that girl. You are that shit.\u2019 I had to tell myself every single fucking day, even when I didn\u2019t believe it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cho agreed. \u201cWe grow up feeling that there\u2019s this expectation of how we should be, and there\u2019s a responsibility of how we should act. But this movie gets to show so many different types of personalities and characters and boldness and fearlessness, and these super-hot, badass women who are also goofy, silly, and cute \u2026 It just plays that you can be badass, beautiful, soft, and you can still be vulnerable. I love all of that, and I feel all of us in some realms have found some healing in it as the world has. I think that\u2019s what keeps bringing people back to the movie, is that the story is incredibly healing and a connector for everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

EJAE felt especially connected to Rumi, as you might expect. \u201cIt was very interesting to see everyone come together and work on this incredible story. We had to fight a lot, and I think every single person can understand that part. But because of that struggle, and all the demons that we had to deal with, that\u2019s what made the movie so beautiful and genuine. I think that struggle was needed,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think all those demons were needed for this film, because through that, we were able to find depth in our writing and acting. It hit home. Looking at what Rumi is going through, I was able to relate to that. I think it was really about knowing that your demons will be there no matter what, and just knowing how to navigate, and not to hide that anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

Head to Variety<\/a> to read the full interview with the KPop Demon Hunters cast.<\/p>\n

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel<\/a>, Star Wars<\/a>, and Star Trek<\/a> releases, what\u2019s next for the DC Universe on film and TV<\/a>, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Just when you thought every angle on KPop Demon Hunters had been covered\u2014until the much-anticipated sequel\u00a0drops, whenever that…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":304291,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[93,61,60,3622,270,1868],"class_list":["post-304290","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-movies","tag-entertainment","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-kpop-demon-hunters","tag-movies","tag-netflix"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/304290","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=304290"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/304290\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/304291"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=304290"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=304290"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=304290"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}