Celebrity Travel: Go away with Gia Kim

Jae-Ha Kim, Tribune Content Agency on Jan 14, 2025

Gia Kim knew from the get-go that her role as Yuri in “XO, Kitty” was special. “Even before I knew I was going to get to play the part, I was very excited when I saw the breakdown of the character,” Kim said in a Zoom interview from her Los Angles home. “She was described as this queer, Korean, queen bee. I've never seen that combination in a character before. There are so many aspects to her that I thought, ‘She's gonna just be a whole new archetype of a character. And I’m so thankful it was me who got cast to play her.’” Season two of the Netflix series will drop on Jan. 16.

Q: Yuri attends an international school in Seoul. You also attended a similar type of school. Did any of Yuri’s experiences resonate with your real life?

A: Obviously, the cultural diversity at the school was something that was in common. It was this condensed version of a globe, because all the kids were from all over the world. So there was diversity in the composition of students at my school that was similar to [the Korean Independent School of Seoul] in “XO, Kitty.” Because I was so young, I didn't know there was definitely racial politics happening at the school, which I didn't even think was what was happening at the time. I had to learn to navigate those social dynamics early on in life, which helped shape me to be the person that I am today in a very unique way.

Q: Was this in South Korea?

A: No, whenever I went back to Korea, I was going to local schools. And then when I was in Hong Kong, I attended international school.

Q: Can you fill us in on some of the places you’ve lived?

A: I was born in Seoul. My first experience living outside of Korea was when I was five and we moved to Indonesia. When I was six or seven, I came back to Korea. I was in Hong Kong from eight to 13. And then from 13 to 17, I was back in Korea. I was in Hong Kong until I was 22 and I finished uni there. Then I was in Beijing after Hong Kong, New York for my early 20s, back to Korea in my mid 20s, and then I came to Los Angeles when I was 27. Now I’m back and forth between Korea and L.A.

Q: Did you study abroad in college as well?

A: I did my semester exchange in Denmark. I was studying journalism at the time. I was going around looking for stories and interviewing people and shooting clips, and the weather was always bad [when I was there]. But it was also an amazing experience. For our final project, we could shoot our 30-minute documentary on any topic. We decided to go to Crete and cover the financial crisis that was happening in Greece at the time. It was an excuse to enjoy Crete and have a bit of vacation. The weather was so nice and it was just such a lovely experience. We were there during Ramadan and they cooked a whole goat for us.

Q: Aside from the places you’ve lived, where have you traveled that you consider pivotal?

A: I've done so many lovely family trips. But my first formidable experience abroad was when I went to Ghana with my friend in college. We went as part of an NGO. That was really interesting, and talk about a culture shock. It was a formative experience with very big ups and downs. I caught malaria and I thought, “Is this how I’m going to die?” But [even still], I just had the most amazing time with amazing people in Ghana.

Q: Because of your upbringing, does your accent change depending on where you are?

A: It’s been generally American for a while now, but I'm very susceptible to the accents around me as well. When I was living with my roommate in L.A., who’s a valley girl, I started talking like that. But then when I'm with my brother [Sang-heon Lee, who is Kim’s co-star in the “XO, Kitty” franchise], he has more of this British accent that I kind of adopt, too. I definitely adapt according to who I'm with and where I am.

Q: You’ve lived in countries that are on so many people’s bucket lists. What is left on yours?

A: There are so many places. Northern Africa or Mediterranean region. Egypt is definitely in my top three right now. South America. I want to go to the Amazon and Brazil and just experience that side of the continent. Also New Zealand.

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(Jae-Ha Kim is a New York Times bestselling author and journalist. You can reach her at www.jaehakim.com, follow her on Instagram and X @goawaywithjae, or read more from her on Substack (jaehakim.substack.com).)