Who is that? It’s a question you’ll be asking yourself a lot, whether you crave spin-offs about lovable teens, royal romances, action-packed thrillers, coming-of-age comedies — or any of the many other obsession-worthy tales coming to Netflix this year. Bringing all those worlds to life is a group of exciting new faces destined to blow up your group chat. Want to be the first friend to tell that perfect celebrity anecdote? Or are you simply wondering what titles to add to your watch lists right now? Ahead, 23 new Netflix stars introduce themselves and share behind-the-scenes intel on your soon-to-be favorites shows and movies — from outrageous casting stories to the on-set friendships that changed their lives. Get to know the fresh faces of 2023:

India Amarteifio

Hometown: London
Instagram: @india_amarteifio

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast. 
I was in the shower when I got the call. Safe to say, it was the quickest shower ever completed.

What about your audition sticks out the most to you?
Choking on a sesame snack in my Zoom audition. It will haunt me forever. 

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project)?
I absolutely adore Money Heist. It’s so unexpected and the acting is just fab. 

Aaron Branch

Hometown: Kansas City, Missouri
Instagram: @aaronbranchworld

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast. 
I was in the drive-thru line of Burger King, celebrating a successful audition with an order of French toast sticks and hash browns, when my agent called and told me I was a top contender for the role. While I was home and eating, she called again and told me I booked the series. I cried with a mouth full of French toast — it was the perfect moment. 

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
Tenacity, for sure. I was an executive assistant to a CEO of a company, then promoted to a manager of a small team prior to landing the role of Malcolm. I was incredibly insecure within the position, had absolutely no idea what I was doing, and I’m 95% sure no one on my team respected me in the slightest, but I was figuring it out! Malcolm is in a similar position and is figuring it out in the most Malcolm way. 

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project)? 
This is hard! But, I really, really like reality TV, and The Ultimatum is pretty incredible content. Keep ’em coming, Nick and Vanessa! I’m begging you.

Milan Carter

Hometown: Philadelphia 
Instagram: @milancarter

What about your audition sticks out the most to you? 
When it came time for my chemistry read with Arnold [Schwarzenegger], we ran the scenes a few times. Then, entering screen left is Lulu [the donkey], chomping on carrots. Everyone screams, “Aww, look at the donkey.” Nothing — and I mean nothing — prepares you for being upstaged by a donkey. Fast-forward: Lulu and I have a great relationship now. 

What surprising quality do you share with your character? 
I’m a nerd — I love anime, fantasy fiction and playing video games. We both have an insatiable appetite for candy. Chewy sour candy, preferably. 

Who was your best friend on set and why?
Fortune Feimster. Neither one of us really thought of ourselves as “action heroes.” So to be thrown into weapons training on Day 1, we had to do a lot of figuring it out together. Plus, she’s hilarious — I mean have you seen her stand-up?

Anna Cathcart

Hometown: Vancouver, British Columbia
Instagram: @annacathcart

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast. 
When I was first cast as Kitty [in To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before] I truly had no idea how much she was going to change my life. I had just turned 14 and at the time I was auditioning for a one-off little romance movie (that I absolutely loved). I was ecstatic, but so unaware of the incredible universe that I was about to enter. 

What about your audition stands out the most to you? 
I remember my callback was on the very last day of eighth grade and I came rushing from school. Moments before I went into the audition room, I reached into my bag and discovered a pen had exploded all over my backpack, so my hands were now completely covered in ink. I was so flustered and was frantically trying to wipe myself down when I got called in. Not the best impression, but hey, I guess it worked out.

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
We both hate mayo. 

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project)?
Tick, Tick… Boom! The soundtrack and cinematography are… chef’s kiss! And Andrew Garfield, major chef’s kiss.

Justin Chien

Hometown: Taipei, Taiwan
Instagram: @justin_chien

What about your audition sticks out the most to you?
They screwed with me! A few days after our test, I finally got the call from our casting director and producers. I thought to myself, “Here we go, good news.” If it wasn’t going my way, my manager would be the one calling. But they were super apologetic and tiptoeing around, thanking me profusely for all my hard work over the grueling seven-week process. It sounded like a college rejection letter. I buried my face and was starting to tune out and prepare for heartbreak, and then abruptly they said, “Anyway, you got the part!” When it finally started to sink in, I wept. It was overwhelming because at that moment, it felt like everything I had sacrificed to get to that point wasn’t all for nothing. 

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
We’re both massive gluttons. And good chefs! Charles is a baker, and I love cooking. We both enjoy being in the kitchen — eating, experimenting, eating some more. Food is our love language. 

Who was your best friend on set and why? 
Jon Xue Zhang — he’s just a lovely, stand-up guy, a giant teddy bear (who could legitimately obliterate you if you crossed him). He always had the biggest smile on his face and genuinely tried to connect with everyone on set. He also trained me in his own time, imparting gems from his enormous experience with various martial arts. We held pads for each other once. Big mistake. My elbow still hurts.

Chloe Coleman

Hometown: Los Angeles
Instagram: @chloecolemanact 

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
Playing Phoebe is my first role as a full-on teenager. I was so ready to play Phoebe — she’s edgy, cool and doesn’t care what people think. I identify most with the fact that she’s strong, gutsy and likes to tell it like it is. Sometimes Phoebe is more like “the mom” than her mom, and I really love how they can switch roles in how they relate to each other. 

Who was your best friend on set and why? 
Hands down, my best friend on set was Emily [Blunt]. She’s the most endearing person and super fun to be around, always. In the past, I’ve often played characters [who] don’t really have a mom in their life. She’s a dream come true to work with and I had to pinch myself every day to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project)? 
I love several of Netflix’s limited series like The Queen’s Gambit, but my all-time favorite and the most riveting was When They See Us that Ava DuVernay wrote and directed. I learned a lot of sad and scary truths by living in that story, because the way it was told made you feel like you were right there, and it brought up so many different emotions.

Emma Ferreira

Hometown: St. Catharines, Ontario
Instagram: @emmapilarferreira

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast.
I pretty much blacked out, and all I could do was pretend to receive information and say “OK” a bunch of times.

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character?
Like Ruby, I love receiving any type of affirmation from Sian Clifford.

Who was your best friend on set and why?
Rachel Marsh and Aaron Branch. If we were together, we were never not laughing. Rachel and I also ate an absurd amount of Bueno bars from craft and that, I think, bonded us for life.

Sang Heon Lee

Hometown: Hong Kong
Instagram: @sangheonleesh

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast.
Honestly I felt more relieved than happy. The feeling that went through my body was unreal. I surprised my mum when I got home and called my whole family to share the good news. And also I was finally able to eat properly. I couldn’t eat properly during the time of auditions because I was so nervous.

What about your audition stands out the most to you?
The moment I saw Anna the first time, through a Zoom audition. That was the moment where I told myself, “Damn, get your shit together.” 

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project)?
This is a hard one but I gotta go with Peaky Blinders. Loved the show, probably because I love the noir genre.

Anthony Keyvan

Hometown: Costa Mesa, California
Instagram: @anthonykeyvan

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
The fact that the writers decided to make him half Iranian, half Filipino like me!

Who was your best friend on set and why? 
Jocelyn [Shelfo] and I never had a moment where we weren’t cracking up about something. 

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project)? 
Wednesday takes the cake.

Gia Kim

Hometown: Seoul
Instagram: @thisisgiakim

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast. 
I was working a brunch shift on a Sunday when my manager called me. When he told me I got the part, I broke down in tears. I didn’t care if people were watching — I will never forget that moment. After that, I texted my mum to call me when she [woke] up (she was on Korea time). Then I went back to work like nothing had happened.

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
The desire to be seen for who I really am. I don’t know if I can confidently say I have anyone in my life who sees my whole [self]. So that desire to be appreciated was the core overlap between me and Yuri.

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project)? 
I really cannot answer “favorite” questions, but I’ll list a few off the top of my head I loved (not in this particular order): Ozark, Black Mirror, Orange Is the New Black, Stranger Things, Money Heist and Squid Game.

Wesley Kimmel 

Hometown: Los Angeles
Instagram: @i.am.wesley.kimmel

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast.
I got to do chemistry reads with Ashton [Kutcher] and Reese [Witherspoon], which was encouraging. I felt like I had clicked well with both of them — Ashton and I love chocolate, sloths and Guns N’ Roses — so I was hoping they would choose me, and sure enough, not long after that, we got the call that I’d been cast. 

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character?
Jack and I both have allergies (grass and dust mites), we both have overprotective mothers (sorry, Mom), we both love ice hockey and we are both a little dorky. 

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project)?
I’m a big Wednesday fan, but Warrior Nun is also great.

Highdee Kuan

Hometown: Waddinxveen, The Netherlands
Instagram: @highdeekuan

What about your audition sticks out the most to you?
With Alexis, the usual anxiousness of wanting to book the role disappeared [during my last audition], because I was just so excited and grateful for getting the chance to play her, regardless of the outcome. That felt incredibly freeing and I remember feeling quite calm before going into the final audition. Which is not how I usually operate, by the way. 

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
Our undying love for spicy foods — especially spicy ramen noodles and spice packets. Anything spicy, tangy and/or soup-based is pretty much my kryptonite. 

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project)? 
I have a special place in my heart for Mindhunter, The Crown and The Great British Baking Show.

Rachel Marsh

Hometown: Seattle
Instagram: @rachel_marsh

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast. 
I happy-cried for 10 minutes and then went out to get shrimp to celebrate. 

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
We're both genius biotech scientists. Just kidding, but I think both of us are pretty good at using our sense of humor to our advantage. Also, Luna slowly finds her voice throughout the season and I feel like I’m finding my own voice as a comedic actor in the industry. 

Who was your best friend on set and why?
My best friends on set were Emma [Ferreira] and Aaron [Branch]. This was our first time being series regulars and we instantly became a family. We’d eat all of our meals together and make each other break on camera just because it was funny to us. 

Minyeong Choi

Hometown: Seoul

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast.
Since it was a huge opportunity I’d been waiting for my whole life, I was obviously delighted. But at the same time, to be honest, I was a little nervous too. I instantly started thinking about how I would handle this opportunity well and what I should work on before shooting to do my best.

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character?
The one surprising quality that I share with my character would be winning someone’s heart with sincerity.

Who was your best friend on set and why?
I would say Anna. While I was talking to her on set, I came to realize that even though we are different in many ways, the way we think and the way we try to see the world is similar.

Miss Benny 

Hometown: Denton, Texas
Instagram: @missbenny

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast. 
Girly-pop, do I have a story for you. I actually have a video of the moment I was cast! After a two-week audition process they offered me the role of Marco in the room, and I gave the cry of a lifetime. Very Sally Field Oscar speech. But I was about to give up on acting before I got my Glamorous audition, so it was a lot, OK? 

What about your audition sticks out the most to you? 
If I had a dollar for every audition I went into prior to Glamorous where I was told to tone down my queerness… girl. And so I went into the Glamorous audition really apprehensive to be too flamboyant. I was giving very, like, “diet” Benny. But then the feedback I got was to let go and be myself. My entire career I had never been given permission to let go and just give. And then I was being celebrated for my queerness? It was all the homosexual validation a doll could ask for.

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
Truly, I live in constant fear of how identical Marco and I are. Like, the call is coming from inside the house.

Who was your best friend on set and why? 
Well, in one of the episodes we had a puppy named Tequila on set. And Kim Cattrall introduced me to the pup asking, “Have you met Tequila?” — to which I said, “Many, many times.” 

Keyla Monterroso Mejia

Hometown: Baldwin Park, California
Instagram: @keylamonterrosomejia

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast
Just a huge feeling of “holy shit.” 

What about your audition sticks out the most to you?
We had to tape four scenes in total and I remember for the first scene I was eating sour gummy worms. In the second scene, I was drinking a protein shake –– and of course, I had to do the scenes the same way for the producer session, which lasted around two hours. By the end of it, I was so nauseous, and you can imagine what happened next. 

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
How much she loves her friends and family and how she’s in everyone’s business. I can’t help it, I’m nosy! 

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project)? 
I promise I’m not just saying this because I’m in the spinoff but On My Block is my favorite. It was such a comfort blanket for me in a time where I really needed it, and it was one of the first times I saw myself represented on-screen. It made me laugh and cry and laugh and cry.

Corey Mylchreest

Hometown: London
Instagram: @coreymylchreest

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast.
I got the call in the middle of the night because the decision was made on LA time. My agent was at a party but got the news and wanted to let me know straightaway. I was asleep in my girlfriend’s bed, so I had to wake her up and sneak out of her room into the hallway in her tiny pink robe and try to avoid her housemates. I got the news and crumpled on the stairs. Very unappealing.

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character?
I would say both George and I can become addicted to hobbies to experience escapism. When I’m struggling with something, I tend to get a bit obsessive about a subject, whether it’s history, fitness or some kind of fantasy/nerd thing. I reckon that’s the same reason that George delves into his astronomy, science and farming — an effort to escape and distract from the struggles he’s having day-to-day.

Who was your best friend on set and why?
Freddie Dennis, who plays Reynolds. I think the show and the writing encouraged an openness and vulnerability between us as actors. I also think we’re pretty similar in a lot of ways. Plus, the fact he’s truly a beautiful human being is a bonus. We’ve gone from strangers to housemates.

Lucy Paez 

Hometown: Houston 

What about your audition sticks out the most to you?
Meeting Jennifer Lopez. In general, I never get nervous when I meet people. Everyone kept telling me that I was going to be so nervous when I met Jennifer, though. I didn’t believe them until the moment I saw her. She was dressed head-to-toe in full glam, and when she was performing the audition scene with me, her presence was thunderous. I got nervous because I had never interacted with such a, for lack of a better word, goddess.

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character?
At first I didn’t really share any major qualities with Zoe; I ended up bringing a lot of my own personality and style to her character and bringing her to life in that way. I always wear 20 bracelets on my right hand. Niki [Caro, the director] saw my bracelets and she loved that detail and wanted Zoe to have them, too. I actually made some of Zoe’s bracelets myself. I love that the bracelets represent Zoe’s journey –– they are perfect and new before the kidnapping, and as Zoe gets tougher and more independent, the bracelets become dirty, and torn, and by the end of the movie, she has no bracelets left; she’s grown into a totally new person.

Who was your best friend on set and why?
I loved working with everyone, and they all treated me so well, but I definitely spent the most time with Jennifer. I really felt the mother-daughter connection on set with her. She was very protective of me and I felt like I could talk to her about anything. She would talk to me in a mentor-best friend-motherly way. 

Keith Powers

Hometown: Sacramento
Instagram: @keithpowers

What about your audition sticks out the most to you?
I was fortunate enough to not have to go through a traditional audition process for this specific project so my table read was like my audition. It was my first time I got to actually read with Gab [Gabrielle Union] and I realized that our chemistry was on point and what really stuck out to me was how much of a pro she was. I knew then I had to make sure I was on my A game.

Who was your best friend on set and why?
I had three best friends on set. Our director Numa Perrier allowed me to be me and trusted me as an actor. Gab made me feel comfortable on set and we shared a lot of laughs. Tommy [Oliver], our producer, kept me encouraged and looked out for me and my performance.

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project)?
I will have to go with Ozark. That show was heat!

Bryana Salaz 

Hometown: Florida
Instagram: @bryanasalaz

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast. 
I was sitting on the couch watching Death Note on Netflix, and vividly remember hitting “decline” to my manager’s call (I take my anime binges very seriously), which led to the “YOU’RE GOING TO WANT TO ANSWER THIS ONE” text. Cut to a 14-minute video of me sobbing on the phone because I thought I was being pranked and couldn’t comprehend the reality that my life was changing in that moment.

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
We both struggle with self-sabotage in order to protect our own emotions and feelings. It was through [playing] Ines that I was able to understand my own patterns and heal them. We’re both secretly smart and meticulous, but people underestimate us because of how we approach life. So they never know what we’re truly thinking — and that’s how we want it. If I were to guess, I’d say Ines is a Scorpio, as they are said to be the aggressive Virgos (I’m a Virgo). 

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project? 
I’m going to base it off my more recent binges because everyone knows a Virgo can NOT make decisions. Aside from the latest Fluffy comedy special (aka my favorite comedian of all time), I’m absolutely obsessed with The Haunting of Hill House and Midnight Mass. I’m a big fan of all things spooky, especially when it’s telling a story in such an artistic way.

Arsema Thomas

Hometown: Nairobi and New York 
Instagram: @arsemathomas

Tell us about the moment you found out you were cast. 
I was finishing up my work shift as a butcher’s apprentice in Notting Hill, and I missed the call initially because my gloves were covered in blood and guts. 

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
I was surprised to find out that we both have a hard time admitting our mistakes, and I think it’s because we both have a sense of pride that makes it difficult to see our own faults. I always knew that about myself, but I was excited to see this flaw in Agatha because it’s one that I find interesting to investigate as an actor and to watch as an audience member.

Who was your best friend on set and why? 
My best friends on the set were the crew trainees, a group of really great Black people who worked in HMU (hair and makeup), sparks, and were ADs (assistant directors). A lot of my scenes were alone or with tons of people and because of that, I found myself creating relationships with crew members. We had lunch together, we would text on the weekends and recently we all had a dinner party at my place. But I think the reason we forged this friendship is because of their honesty, the cultural familiarity and also because as a Black person on a set I tend to be a minority. With them, I felt safe to voice my opinions and confident that I was being heard.

Tenzing Norgay Trainor

Hometown: Los Angeles
Instagram: @tenzingtrainor

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
Cam and I definitely share the way our emotions can go from so calm to so crazy very quickly and at any given moment. It’s one of the things I love about him.

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
Aside from my amazing cast that I love all so equally, I would have to say my best friend on set was our first team production assistant, Beau Bielski. Beau was also the first team PA on Boo, Bitch with me. So over the course of two shows, we grew to become pretty good friends. He even took me to my first concert, Kid Cudi.

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project!)? 
My favorite Netflix show ever has got to be Stranger Things. Especially seeing the point they are at now from when they first started –– it’s so crazy. Each episode is like a whole movie.

Ciara Riley Wilson

Hometown: Portland, Oregon
Instagram: @ciararileywilson

What about your audition sticks out the most to you? 
Demi’s character description said she was obsessed with spirituality and crystals, so I wanted to bring that vibe into the audition. I go to this gem show every year in Arizona, so I grabbed a flat green jade crystal from my collection and was rubbing it for the entirety of one of the scenes. Looking back at the audition, it’s funny to see how much the character has developed since then. The core of Demi was still there, but I feel like I know her so much better now. 

What’s one surprising quality you share with your character? 
I’m also a big romantic. Just like Demi, I love love — and all of the sweet, meaningful things that come with it. 

What’s your favorite Netflix show or film of all time (besides your project)? 
My favorite Netflix film would have to be The Half of It. It’s a beautiful film that’s touching, introspective and full of heart. Leah Lewis is one of my favorite actors and this movie is really inspiring for me in terms of Asian American and queer representation.