Celebrating KPop Demon Hunters, the animated masterpiece that united the world

KPop Demon Hunters, the Sony Animation and Netflix film released on June 20, 2025, became an overnight sensation. It spawned fan fiction and TikTok dance videos, earned a place in the Criterion Collection, prompted a McDonald's collaboration and became the most-watched Netflix Original movie ever.

Its hit song “Golden” reached talk shows and even a Saturday Night Live sketch featuring Bad Bunny, and a KPop Demon Hunters world tour is planned. The film follows Huntr/x — Rumi, Mira and Zoey — K-pop superstars by day and demon slayers by night, charged with sealing the gateway between humanity and demons by creating the Honmoon.

Creators Maggie Kang, Chris Appelhans and Michelle L.M. Wong shifted the project away from a more violent, adult-oriented concept toward a four-quadrant movie that speaks to children and adults alike. At its center is Rumi, whose hidden demonic heritage and attendant shame stand in for broader anxieties about identity and repression.

kpop, demon hunters, sony animation, netflix, golden, criterion collection, mcdonalds, tiktok, snl, rumi