Parasite (2019)

Akin to the extraordinary global success of Parasite (2019) and Squid Game (2021–2025) few expected KPop Demon Hunters (2025) to turn into such a cultural phenomenon. Despite little marketing prior to release, the film took off clocking up a whopping 482m views between July and December 2025 according to Netflix's Engagement Report. That was by far its most viewed film on the platform with Happy Gilmore 2 (2025) coming in second with 135m views, and Frankenstein (2025) in third with 98m.

Moreover, after dropping on the platform in June the film's songs by its fictional group HUNTR/X were hits on charts across the world. "Golden" was No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart for eight weeks, while the other songs "How It's Done", "Your Idol" and "Soda Pop" all featured in the Hot 100's top ten.

The animated film by Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans dominated the awards race for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song and went on to win these two accolades at the 98th Academy Awards in March. The performance of "Golden" at the Academy Awards signified the immense reach of Hallyu – Korea's Cultural Wave – on the global stage. It came just days before BTS performed to the world in Gwanghwamun, central Seoul and streamed live on Netflix.

KPop Demon Hunters (2025)

What's interesting about KPop Demon Hunters is that it was a US film produced by Sony Pictures Animation with the rights then sold to Netflix. The streamer has been the subject of much debate in the Korean contents industry for the past few years. Following the success of Squid Game, there were growing concerns in the local industry about Korean production companies being "Subcontracted" by Netflix and the streaming giant then holding all the rights to the lucrative IP.

KPop Demon Hunters is different to Squid Game as it wasn't a Korean production, but it does further highlight how the industry has changed. For decades, there has been a complex relationship between Korea's film industry and Hollywood. In 1988, local producers objected to the direct distribution of Hollywood films and released snakes into a theater when Fatal Attraction (1987) was released. In 2006, the screen quota was halved sparking much opposition from the local industry.

More telling, however, is how Korea has been able to respond to Hollywood's hegemony by beating it at its own game. Korea's studio system emulating that of Hollywood has produced its own blockbusters and mid-sized budget films taking the local market share over 50 percent for much of the 2010s.

Minari (2020)

Yet by the 2020s the paradigm has shifted. Hollywood having seen the appeal of Korea-themed content optimized with Parasite, it too has responded and not just with KPop Demon Hunters. Minari (2020), Past Lives (2023) and Beef (2023–2026) are also illustrations of cultural hybridity with ethnic Koreans involved in American content. The commercial and awards success of these films and in the case of Beef, a Netflix series, indicates that this will further evolve. Beef Season 2 premieres on the platform on April 16.

While the concerns surrounding the sheer dominance of Netflix do persist, the success of KPop Demon Hunters was celebrated in Korea. South Korean President Lee Jae-myung joined Maggie Kang in a panel discussing the future of K-pop on Arirang TV last summer. The director was also awarded the Okgwan Order of Cultural Merit in December for her contribution to the global expansion of Korean culture.

Korea's studio system is now evolving in a way that shares similarities to the UK that gets most of its financing from the US. Korea has successfully built its own fully integrated studios differentiating it from the UK but with increasing investment for Korea-themed content coming from the US, Korea's content ecosystem is now radically different compared to the 2000s or even 2010s.

This isn't necessarily a negative development. The UK content industry has continued to thrive in partnership with US studios/streamers that's often evident on the Award's Race with Hamnet (2025) receiving eight Academy Award nominations, and Netflix's Adolescence (2025) also attracted significant attention. According to the BFI (British Film Institute) film and high-end TV spend was a huge 6.8 billion pounds ($9 billion) in 2025.

Looking ahead, given the now mainstream nature of the Korean music industry, there are several upcoming K-pop themed projects with US studios involved. A psychological thriller titled Perfect Girl starring Arden Cho about the forming of a Korean Idol group is an international co-production between the US and Korea. US-based Thunder Road Films are producing the title with the Korean music production company Zanybros. The film is being directed by its founder Hong Won-ki.

Paramount Pictures is teaming up with Hybe America on Benson Lee's K-Pop: Superstar (aka Appa's Diner) that is the first US film to be entirely shot in Korea. The film about a K-Pop survival show starring Ji-Young Yoo and Eric Nam will be released in the US in February 2027. Interestingly, both these projects feature members of the voice cast from KPop Demon Hunters (Arden Cho, Ji-Young Yoo).

A sequel to the Netflix hit is also now officially in the works with Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans returning as directors while Sony Pictures Animation is again producing. The directing duo have signed a multi-year writing and directing partnership with the streamer as it seeks to retain the talent that created the platform's most viewed film. The film is not expected to be released until 2029 owing to the long production cycles of animated films that are currently booming, especially with younger viewers that were a key demographic in its success.

Other K-pop-themed films are also reportedly being planned. Last year it was announced that Lee Jung-jae's production company Artist Studio had signed a development partnership with UK's Imaginarium Productions founded by Andy Serkis to produce Secret Idol (Working title). The project appears to bring together the world of K-pop and the thrill of espionage when an agent goes undercover as a trainee Idol.

Owing to the popularity of K-pop this is a trend that is set to continue as Korea's own industry becomes more internationalized with the rise of US financing and international co-productions. This comes at a time when the local market has shrunk significantly, and studios are having to seek out international collaborations.

Written by Jason Bechervaise
Edited by kofic