Answers with Arden Cho

Answer 1

We're super excited for the return of Season 5 of "Teen Wolf" this June! What do you love most about the upcoming season?

Honestly, I love everything about this season. Even though it's scary, there's still a great balance of comedy. I feel like this is our best season yet and I can't wait for the premiere on June 29th!

Season 4 of "Teen Wolf" was pretty dark and really focused on The Benefactor...how will season 5 be different?

I feel like this season focuses on all the characters individually going through their own struggles and conflicts. I don't want to spoil it but everyone in the pack has choices to make and we're all growing up.

Your character, Kira Yukimura, joined the "Teen Wolf" cast in season 3. Thinking back to 2013...what was it about Kira that made you audition for her role?

I loved that she was a strong, yet sweet character. I was excited that Teen Wolf was a supernatural show and honestly I was just stoked to audition for a role that had so much potential to grow. It's not often there are roles like this available for Asian American females.

Are there any similarities between yourself and Kira? How do you avoid losing yourself in Kira's character while filming the series?

Definitely. As the seasons progress I feel like we develop more similarities because the writers write more for us as they get to know us better. A lot of the "awkwardness" of Kira is so much of myself and I think I gain a lot of confidence because Kira is a lot more confident than I am. We're different but we share so many similarities, I feel like she's one of my alter egos.

Let's talk Scira...will things be steaming up between Scott and Kira in season 5?

Oh absolutely, I think it's about time!

You've revealed that Kira gets a lot closer with Malia and Lydia in season 5. What was it like to work more with Holland Roden and Shelley Hennig while filming?

Amazing! It's a boys club here at Teen Wolf and I love working with the guys but it's such a fun and different dynamic when working with the girls.

In your downtime, you've launched your watch line "Leonard & Church." What is the inspiration behind your watch line?

I've always loved fashion and especially watches and I don't think you need to spend a lot of money to feel or look good. At Leonard & Church we partner directly with leading watchmakers to design high quality, stylish watches that are still super affordable because we've cut out the middleman.

How did the name "Leonard & Church" come to be?

The company was founded by a small group of friends across New York and LA. Leonard & Church is an intersection in Tribeca, and the name pays homage to the city that brought us all together.

What are your future hopes for "Leonard & Church"? Any chance you'll expand into other avenues?

We definitely want to grow as a lifestyle brand and eventually offer other leather goods that are stylish and high quality without the retail markups!

I'm really loving that the designs and colors of your watches are pretty gender neutral. What was the creation process like in designing the collection?

Thank you! Gender neutral, I love that you noticed! That's one of my favorite things about Leonard & Church, being unisex allows a lot of versatility. We don't want to be too masculine or feminine, it's really a fine line to achieve the right amount of balance. There's so much detail that goes into designing the casing and dials and bezel and all the different components of a watch. Even deciding the design of the minute and hour hands is a lot of work, but also a lot of fun and every little detail matters. It can definitely get very tedious but I love seeing the sketches and designs come to life. We're a small team so it's a lot of work but we're learning a lot through the process.

What have you learned from launching your own business? Any tips for other entrepreneurs who are hoping to accomplish something similar?

Make sure you do your research and know what you're getting into. Launching a brand is a lot of hard work. Getting Leonard & Church off the ground took more than a year of preparation. It's also important to partner with the right people. Even though our team is small, we're fortunate because our skill sets are very different and we balance each other out. It's a good foundation for us to grow. Of course, communication and trust is key. Know what the goal is, make sure everyone is on the same page, put in the hard work, and enjoy the process!

You've also been working on a movie called "Stuck" that is set to release later this year. Why should Answers readers go see "Stuck"?

It's a movie about 6 strangers stuck on a subway discovering pieces of themselves emerging in one another and oddly enough helping each other "move on". A beautiful story that explores exactly what it means to be Stuck, figuratively and relatively.

Describe "Stuck" in 3 words.

Versatile, colorful, enlightening

You originally have a background in theater from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Do you have any plans to return to the stage?

Yes! I would love to be in a Broadway show one day, that's definitely one of my goals for later on in my career!

If you could star in any show alongside any actor or actress, who and what would you choose?

I would love to be on a crime show. I'd want to be a detective on Castle and work with Kate Beckett (Stana Katic) or with Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) on Law & Order SVU.