'Exorcist' newbie John Cho wants to put 'an Asian face in American horror'

Oct. 9 (UPI) -- Korean American actor John Cho says one of the reasons he joined the cast of The Exorcist for Season 2 is because he wanted to put "an Asian face in American horror."

"I wasn't a big horror fan. I was curious about it. But they really attracted me with the character," Cho told reporters at New York Comic Con Sunday.

"On a macro level, I was pretty interested in putting an Asian face in American horror because American horror has been very white and has trafficked in these WASP fantasies almost -- white picket fences -- and, so, what it says to me is: 'This is America. This is the precious America and this is what is in peril.' And I liked messing with that with my face and thought it would be interesting, particularly since there is all this great horror out of Asia, but American horror remains very monochromatic."

Co-starring Ben Daniels and Alfonso Herrera, Season 2 of The Exorcist airs on Friday nights. It follows a pair of specially gifted Catholic priests who save people possessed by demons.

Cho, 45, plays the kindhearted patriarch of a foster family rocked by supernatural forces. The actor is best known for his work in the Harold & Kumar, American Pie and Star Trek films, as well as in the TV series FlashForward, Sleepy Hollow and Difficult People.