In Season 2 of the Starz series American Gods, the battle between the Old Gods, or the traditional gods of mythological roots from around the world, and the New Gods, who reflect society’s modern devotions (i.e. money, technology, media, celebrity and drugs), is really heating up, and Shadow Moon (Ricky Whittle) is on his own path to figuring out exactly what he believes. One of those New Gods is New Media (Kahyun Kim), who has evolved from the Media (Gillian Anderson) of Season 1 into this goddess of global content and master of manipulation who will stop at nothing to get new social media followers.

During this 1-on-1 phone interview with Collider, actress Kahyun Kim talked about the evolution of New Media, reading the Neil Gaiman novel after watching the first season of the TV series, finding this version of the character, the role that technology and media plays in her own life, the dark side of the fun but manipulative New Media, playing the disrupter, and the dynamic between New Media, Tech Boy (Bruce Langley) and Mr. World (Crispin Glover). She also talked about which other existing character she’d like to play and why.

Collider:  I absolutely love this character and the show! New Media is such a cool and interesting addition to Season 2.

KAHYUN KIM:  Oh, thank you!

How did you come to be a part of American Gods? Did you have to go through a whole audition process for it?

KIM:  Yeah, I did. I had my initial audition, and then I ended up doing another callback and reading one other scene. And then, I got it.

With a character like New Media, it’s almost like you’re playing concept along with playing a character, which seems like it would be a bit challenging to wrap your head around figuring out how to bring that to life. How was this character described to you?

KIM:  Actually, for me, it was pretty straightforward, in a weird way. Just because I was such a fan of Season 1, and also a fan of Gillian [Anderson] and the character, I knew what it was. And then when they said, “New Media,” I was like, “That is fucking brilliant!” People are moving on from TV to these small tablets, so the concept was actually very easy to understand. And then, when they gave me four different scenes, I just made a very conscious decision to show very different characters in each scene, with different accents and different characteristics.

You said that you’d been a fan of the TV series, but had you also read the book?

KIM:  I’d read Neil [Gaiman]’s other books, but American Gods was the only one that I watched the TV series first, and then I read the book.

What did you think of the book, especially after having seen the season?

KIM:  It was interesting because I already had Ricky [Whittle] in mind, and Ian [McShane] was already in my mind. It was different, but I loved the book so much, too, and I thought the TV show did a really good job in capturing the depth of it. I enjoyed both. That’s what happened with me, with Harry Potter, too. I actually watched the movies first and enjoyed them, and then I read the books a lot later, and I actually enjoyed both of them. It made me appreciate what came out of the TV show. So, I loved both.

Did you find yourself, personally, drawn more toward being Team Old Gods or Team New Gods?

KIM:  From the books, I’m not gonna lie, I was like, “I love these Old Gods.” But I’m also a geek. I love mythology, so it’s really cool to see these characters and the way that Neil gives them voices is so amazing. And then, with the TV show, I love Mr. World. Crispin [Glover], Bruce [Langley], Gillian [Anderson] and everybody, brought such a quality to it that I can’t resist. So, I love both sides. But I have to be Team New Gods, because I am a New God.

Not only are you walking into this series in the second season, as one of the new cast members among a group of people who have gotten to know each other for a season, but you’re stepping into a role that somebody else has played. What were you most nervous about, when it came to your first day on set?

KIM:  I was nervous because it was an already established character, but it was also clear to me that it was a very different character, so that made me not be as nervous as I was. When it was explained to me, especially after I got the part, they were like, “It’s not like you’re gonna recreate what Gillian did,” which is good because she’s a goddess of her own, so I wouldn’t even attempt to. And also, I’m a very different person from her. I’m a younger Asian female, so it was very drastic. Even if I wanted to, I wouldn’t be able to recreate whatever fantastic things she did, and so, I wasn’t nervous about that. It also helped that everybody was so welcoming, including Neil, our showrunner, and all of the writers. And the cast is just fantastic. They’re so supportive. I’ve never felt like I was late in the game. They invited me out, the second day that I was in Toronto, so it was pretty easy to dive into Season 2.

We’re all so dependent on and obsessed with so many different forms of media, these days. What role does media play, in your own life? How important is it to you, and are you someone who likes to find time to just turn everything off and unplug?

KIM:  It’s tricky because I’m really dependent on it and, right now, I’m even more dependent on it, in a weird way, because of American Gods. I really want to have an interaction with the fans and my castmates. I’m also in a play where a character is Instagram obsessed. It’s becoming a new trend of character that I’m playing. Right now, I’m very heavily into it. Hopefully, I won’t be too dependent on it. I do like to turn it off, once in awhile. When I’m with my friends, I try not to pull my phone out during dinner. That’s rude, in my opinion. I always try to engage in the conversation that we’re having.

When did you feel like you really had a handle on who this character is, what motivates her, and what she really needs to thrive?

KIM:  For me, when I got the role, I did a lot of research, and it also comes a lot from personal experience. I’m in a generation where social media is such a big thing, so it made a lot of sense that, of course, New Media is one of the New Gods. Technology is always upgrading. Neil has said that the New Gods are always nervous because you don’t know when the next thing is gonna come, and you don’t know when you’re gonna be updated. For me, what was exciting about this whole thing was getting to create a character from the book that has already been established and written awhile ago, but that I could bring my own perspective, experience and voice into it. Social media seems like a very easy thing. You just turn on your phone, and you go on Instagram or Tinder or Twitter, and you just say a couple of words. You can’t even write a really long paragraph. And there are so many articles that come out on Facebook, every day. It seems very nonchalant and easy, but it actually has so much power. What’s really exciting about my character is that the way I dress is very cute, innocent, pop-y and fun because that’s what New Media is, but there’s also a dark side to it, with things like politics and fake news. There’s so much power to this platform that it’s easily forgotten. That was really exciting to have that, in the back of my mind, as this character developed and will develop, in the future. It was fun to play with that, knowing that.

New Media is basically the embodiment of emojis, and she has great clothes and hair, but there is a darkness to all of that, which makes her such an interesting character.

KIM:  Yeah. To me, it was so exciting, as an Asian American female, to be cast in a role like that because there are certain unconscious characterizations, with race or gender. New Media seems like an innocent young girl, especially being Asian, and very nice and cordial, but then there is that flipside. Being able to play that was so thrilling, and really fun for me.

We learn that there’s definitely more than meets the eye with New Media, especially when we see things get a little bit freaky between her and Argus.

KIM:  Oh, I love that scene! That was one of my audition scenes, and I remember reading it and being like, “I wanna do this, so bad.” It was so fun to play it very innocent, at first, and then it grows into this weird, grotesque, sexual thing. That was a big power move. Social media has all of that – sex, dance music, politics and everything. That’s what’s so fun about this character.

What was it like to shoot that scene between New Media and Argus? How long did you have to shoot that for?

KIM:  I think we shot it for maybe two or three days. It was really fun. That scene was interesting because it was a good balance between portraying sex and power. I didn’t feel like I was being sexualized. For me, it was a power move, so that was really fun to play. And also, the actor who’s playing Argus was also really fun to be around, as was Bruce. I got to meet Emily [Browning] and Ian while I was moaning about my [social media] followers. That was just an amazing experience. It was like, “Welcome. Thank you. I’m gonna go to the corner now and moan about my followers.” It was actually really fun.

How do you view this character? Do you see her as someone who’s a disrupter that has fun causing trouble, or does she want to go rogue and take over the world? Does she have her own agenda?

KIM:  It’s fun because the dynamic between the New Gods has now changed. With Media, it was like Media and Mr. World were the parents of Tech Boy. They were like the mom and dad, and he was like the son. Now, New Media comes in and the whole dynamic changes, which is really fun. I think she is a disrupter. She likes to have fun, but she’s also really ahead of the game. That’s how I see her. She’s really ahead of everyone. She’s smart to play her strengths. She knows when to play, oh, the innocent young girl card. She knows when to be a powerful woman. She knows how to get followers. I think she’s a really powerful character, and she has a lot inside of her that will develop even more, over the next season.

How would you describe the dynamic between New Media and Tech Boy, and what’s it like to play that with Bruce Langley?

KIM:  It’s so funny. Bruce and I have a lot of fun. As an actress, Bruce is such a fun actor to work with because he gives you so much. Tech Boy thinks he’s really smart, and he thinks he’s got his shit. New Media knows that and knows how to work with that, and work it to her advantage. She knows how to make him feel good, in order to get what she wants. That dynamic is like, “I wanna get rid of you. Plus, there are also things I can get from you, so let me get that.” So, that dynamic is really fun for us to play.

What’s it like to then throw Mr. World into the mix. How does New Media view him?

KIM:  The thing with Mr. World is that she sees the equation of him, in the big picture. She sees his power. In a way, she’s ahead of him and also knows how to use him. New Media sees power and she instantly goes, “How can I use this for myself, to get more followers,” just like every other God, even the Old Gods.

Is there another existing character that you’d love to play, or a character that you’d love to have a hand in creating and telling the story of, at some point?

KIM:  This is my theater geek coming, but I have always wanted to play Cleopatra. She’s another one of those characters where sex is such a big thing in that relationship, and love and lust. I have a weird thing with that, I guess. I have a connection with that, and I find that very interesting.

When it comes to projects, are there things that you look for and things that get you to say no?

KIM:  I never say no to anything. No. I love challenges, and I love playing different stuff. That’s why I love New Media. She does so many various things.

American Gods airs on Sunday nights on Starz.