Animation KPop Demon Hunters hits No. 1 on Netflix in 26 countries, tops 93 charts
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Produced by Sony Pictures Animation, the film blends fast-paced action, fantasy and musical drama.
PHOTO: NETFLIX/FACEBOOK
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SEOUL – An animated film about a K-pop girl group that battles evil spirits is now one of Netflix’s most-watched titles worldwide.
KPop Demon Hunters, co-directed by Korean-American film-maker Maggie Kang and American film-maker Chris Appelhans, debuted on June 20 and quickly topped Netflix’s global chart, according to data from FlixPatrol.
Between June 21 and 22, it held the No. 1 position globally, ranking first in 26 countries and landing in the Top 10 in 93. Viewership has been especially strong not only in Asia, but also in the United States, France and Germany.
The film follows Huntrix, a K-pop trio whose concerts double as supernatural missions. On stage, they use music to maintain a magical barrier called the “honmoon”, which protects the human world from demonic forces.
Their main rival is Gwi-ma, a spirit king who preys on human souls and sends demons to defeat the hunters in the form of a boy band, the Saja Boys.
The voice cast includes major South Korean stars. Actor Lee Byung-hun from Netflix hit Squid Game (2021 to present)
Produced by Sony Pictures Animation, the film blends fast-paced action, fantasy and musical drama.
Although primarily in English, it includes Korean dialogue and is packed with culturally specific details, from folklore creatures like dokkaebi (Korean goblins) to everyday habits like visiting traditional medicine clinics and bathhouses.
Audiences have embraced both the visual design and the music. K-pop producer Teddy contributed to the soundtrack, including Huntrix’s Golden and Saja Boys’ Soda Pop.
K-pop girl group Twice’s Jeongyeon, Chaeyoung and Jihyo perform the film’s opening number, Takedown, and South Korean folk duo MeloMance’s Love, Maybe and K-pop boy band Exo’s Love Me Right play in their original Korean versions.
Critics and viewers agree on the appeal of KPop Demon Hunters.
As at June 25, it holds a 96 per cent critic score and 87 per cent audience score on review-aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes.
The film’s success reinforces Netflix’s belief that “great stories can resonate everywhere, regardless of language or culture”, as Ms Kim Min-young, head of Netflix’s Asia-Pacific content division, said earlier in 2025. THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
