Neither “Superman” nor “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” and not “Jurassic World: Return” is the biggest film of the cinema summer 2025. This honor is due to “KPOP Demon Hunters” – for the first time! – a streaming title! And not only because it brought the animated action musical to the most watched Netflix title, but because it stayed in the pop culture discussion for weeks. After all, Netflix has already produced many streaming audience racers, but in contrast to series such as “Wednesday” or “Stranger Things”, the films have so far left rarely. “Red Notice”, “The Adam Project” and “The Gray Man” were looked at a lot, but then immediately forgotten again.
With “KPOP Demon Hunters”, Netflix has now proven that, in contrast to the accusation of many critics, it can also deliver films (or in this case shopping from the studio Sony), which burns into pop cultural memory in a way, as only cinema films, such as “Barbie”, succeeded. In order to eliminate the last doubts, “KPOP Demon Hunters” was brought to the US cinemas for two days after Netflix-Start after Netflix-and the halls were full of costumed and extremely text-safe fans during the Mitsing version. But why did “KPOP Demon Hunters” have become such a success?
A large part has ensured that “Kung Fu Panda 3” story artist Maggie Kang, together with co-director Chris Appelhans (“the desired dragon”), presented her well-known but important message about self-acceptance with an incredibly large amount of heart, highly choreographed animation action and, above all, catchy pop songs. And even if “KPOP Demon Hunters” is primarily aimed at kids and teenagers, you can also have a lot of fun discovering a lot and thus also learning a lot.
The demon hunters are great fun!
For generations, it has been the task of changing women's trios to protect the world and the souls of all people from the dangerous demons of the underworld god Gwi-Ma (Lee Byung-Hun). Because only enchanting vocals can stabilize a magical barrier (the honmoon) picked up to the upper world, the hunters are also a music trio-always fitting to the currently trendy style of their time.
In the present it is rumi (voice: arden cho / vocals: ejae), Mira (May Hong / Audrey Nuna) and Zoey (Ji-Young Yoo / Rei Ami), who get a unique chance as KPOP trio Huntr / X: If your new single the hoped-for global super hit, you can even create the golden honmoon Gwi-Ma and its dark minions would deny access to earth forever.
Quasi the backstreet boys as a miracle weapon against the Spice Girls
Because GWI-Mas desperate attempts to switch off the hunter trio beforehand, everyone fails, the demon Jinu (ancestor Hyo-Seop / Andrew Choi) suggests a new strategy: The boy band Saja Boys he listed is supposed to outperform the Huntr / X in popularity and thus prevent Golden Honmoon.
The plan quickly leads to initial successes – also because Rumi suddenly is no longer herself and her voice becomes fragile. This is less justified by the fact that she feels attracted to her by competitor Jinu, but is mainly due to a secret that she is in front of everyone and even hides her two colleagues. She is a half-demon herself and hopes to be able to “heal” this page with the golden honmoon …
Rumi suffers from the fact that she is a demon.
With a budget of $ 100 million, “KPOP Demon Hunters” was only developed for the cinema by the Hollywood studio Sony, but then ceded to Netflix at an early stage due to urgently needed income during the Corona pandemic. The streaming service not only covered the costs, but also paid Sony an additional $ 20 million – at the end of one of the most profitable business in film history for Netflix. Because now you have an instant cult hit that is successful far beyond your own platform. The soundtrack also set a record: four songs from the film were also in the top 10 of the US low charts-this has never been possible before.
The songs are also an absolute showpiece of “KPOP Demon Hunters”. Whether “How it's Done”, with which the trio is introduced, the central mega ballad “Golden” or the Diss track “Takedown” available in two versions-every song by Huntr/X has a successful combination of rousing beats and catchy texts, where you can easily be summed up as a non-KPOP fan. At the same time, singer-songwriter Ejae, who not only performs as Rumi, but was primarily responsible for the development of the songs to consistently advance the plot, give the figures an emotional substructure and to tell the audience about important topics such as mental health.
Songs that save the world
Even the two Saja-Boys songs “Soda Pop” and “Your Idol” are more than the shallow numbers than which they are deliberately presented in contrast to the more profound titles of the heroines. They also perform their function perfectly within the film. The fact that the actually completely meaningless “Soda Pop” also gets stuck as a catchy tune gives us the fact that in the film like a virus, it affects the entire population (i.e. not only teenagers, but also office workers in more advanced age), only the necessary credibility.
The “Free”, which Rumi and Jinu jointly performed together with “Golden”, underlines the message of the film. It is about accepting yourself, celebrating your own identity and perhaps to understand supposed weaknesses as strengths. It is certainly not a new statement, but it is not only told here with a lot of heart and swing, but is conveyed in a comprehensible manner. It is also a clever move to underline the diversity of this appeal: Not only does Rumi have to recognize that she no longer has to hide the demon paints on her skin, also understand Mira and Zoey that certain character traits with which they have affected their lives are something that they can actually be proud.
Don't be persuaded that you are not good enough. Supposed doubts and weaknesses can be strengths!
In retrospect, a lot is now being blasphemed that Sony could possibly have a huge number of cinema through the rags with the submission of the project to Netflix. Whether “KPOP Demon Hunters” would also have become a comparable mega hit on the big screen remains pure speculation. With certainty, it can be said that Sony is once again holding himself at the top of innovative animation art in Hollywood. As in “Spider-Man: A New Universe” and the successor “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse”, you go to the risk when familiar patterns and styles are broken up and reorganized.
There are modern 3D models and photo-realistic passages, but the next moment are broken by cartoon and anime influences. When the completely flashed Zoey jumps out of his eyes at the sight of an exposed six -pack with enthusiasm, which also eats the Mira, which is also very affected with a wink. Techniques that are actually known from the classic 2D sign trick cinema are used here in the computer-animated 3D film. These include, for example, so -called lubrication images, in which fast movements are deliberately blurred. Then suddenly it looks like Mira has several arms when she beats up a demon.
Action and dance are really one here
With all of this, there is no typical Hollywoodization of Asian culture – on the contrary: the Korean roots of the fabric are emphasized in all images by costumes, the equipment as well as the design of the figures, without falling into clichés. The outstanding staging also benefits from the fact that action and dance are traditionally very close together. When Chad Stahelski won the singer Rina Sawayama on board for the fourth part of his celebrated action series “John Wick”, he had no concerns that, despite the lack of experience, she would master the demanding fight scenes. He had seen her dancing beforehand.
In “KPOP Demon Hunters”, the dance movement and beating action are often one and the same. The hunters sometimes knock down a horde of demons during a live concert-and their unsuspecting fans believe that a spectacular appearance with damn good special effects and first-class demon make-up. Stage show and world rescue merge here into a visually spectacular experience.
Conclusion: Netflix has its “Barbie” moment, because the animation action musical is so much more than just a streaming hit. The declaration of love for the power of music, on self-acceptance and creative animation succeeds with memorable songs, clever symbolism and visual ingenuity. We will hear and see a lot from “KPOP Demon Hunters” – and certainly not only in the form of the second part that has already been confirmed.