Director: Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans
Screenplay: Danya Jimenez, Hannah McMechan, Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans
Starring (voice actors and in brackets the corresponding character’s singer): Arden Cho (EJAE), May Hong (Audrey Nuna), Ji-young Yoo (Rei Ami), Ahn Hyo-seop (Andrew Choi), Yunjin Kim, Ken Jeong, Lee Byung-hun, Daniel Dae Kim
Country: United States
Running Time: 96 Min
Year: 2025
BBFC Certificate: PG
Every now and then a film is released that becomes so huge that it’s the epitome of a global phenomenon. The 1970s gave us the likes of the first modern blockbuster Jaws (1975) and the first Star Wars (1977), E.T. The Extra-terrestrial (1982) and Batman (1989) conquered the 1980s and Titanic (1997) and Jurassic Park (1993) owned the 1990s. More recently we’ve had the likes of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Frozen (2013) and in 2025, the Netflix phenomenon KPop Demon Hunters, the focus of this review.
The film was a true cultural moment in time. It won Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song at the Oscars, has had over 325 million views on Netflix and it was the first film soundtrack to have four songs in the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 simultaneously. Songs were played in clubs, merchandise was released and it also received widespread acclaim. And for physical media fans, the film has now entered the Criterion Collection.
KPop Demon Hunters follows the chart-topping girl group HUNTR/X and its three members Rumi, Mira, and Zoey, who are huge superstars whose every song sparks a furore. But that’s only part of their story, for as well as being a much loved girl group they are also secretly demon hunters who protect their fans from supernatural forces.
Ruler of the demons Gwi-ma finds his devilish plots are frequently foiled and his army always beaten by our heroines, until a group of demons persuade him to let them form a boy band – The Saja Boys – to try to take down the girl group through their own game.
The films opens with a wonderful sequence that tells us the backstory to the demons of the world and introduces us to the three central characters who form the girl group and are also secretly demon hunters. We see them bond in an aircraft that is flying away from a sold out concert they’re due to perform at. The reason? Demons have taken over the flight.
The girls defeat the demons and perform one of their hits. It’s an exhilarating and fun opening. It’s just one of numerous entertaining and thrilling sequences as we follow the exploits of the music superstars on stage, at home and in combat.
The story is wonderfully told, frequently funny, occasionally creepy enough to border on scary, and is full of references to ancient and modern Korean culture, thanks to director Maggie Kang. It’s that aspect that made me a big fan, learning a little bit about Korean culture and spotting references throughout.
Rumi and the leader of the boy band Jinu form a bond that grows as the film progresses but both have secrets leading to some revelations and a very dark rendition of the song Take Down that threatens to lead to the demise of the girl group.
The film looks gorgeous thanks to wonderful art design and a fittingly colourful colour scheme. The music numbers are often shot like music videos – and in some cases are meant to be such promo pieces – and are fabulous as a result. The songs that introduce our heroines and their demon boy band rivals are both great.
The music is terrific, full stop. I’m a rock, metal and film score fan, not pop. But even I was humming along and one or two of the infectious songs ear-wormed their way into me and I found myself recalling the songs a long time after the credits ended. Highlights include Golden, Your Idol, Soda Pop, and How It’s Done.
There are some wonderful characters – each of the girl and boy band members feel distinct and unique and complement each other well, and best of all are Derpy Tiger, a cute feline, and Aussie, a six eyed magpie. They are both terrific. Gwi-ma and the demon versions of the boy band are pretty creepy and there are some eerie moments as a result, including the performance of Your Idol.
At its heart the film has a really positive story to tell of believing in yourself, confronting your demons – in this case physical and not so physical – overcoming pressure, and how the world isn’t as clear cut as being filled with just good and evil, it’s more complex than that. There are also numerous subtexts and other elements to unpick. It’s a film ripe for rewatching both to uncover more of the culture and other aspects that are woven into the tableaux of the story, and to just have a fabulous time.
In closing, I get the hype. KPop Demon Hunters is a fantastic animated musical full of memorable characters, infectious pop songs, colourful animation, creepy demons and some really strong thought provoking themes. It is endlessly entertaining, worthy of revisiting and is downright entertaining from opening moment to closing song.
Film: 
KPop Demon Hunters is released on 9th November 2026 by the Criterion Collection on a director-approved 4K UHD and Blu-ray special edition and standalone separate Blu-ray and DVD editions. The picture, a new 4K digital master approved by directors Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans, is eye popping good. Image is crystal clear showcasing the beautiful art design perfectly. The all-important sound, given the score and songs, is first class with everything sounding real clear. There is real weight to the score and songs, and dialogue and sound effects are also clear.
Director-approved 4K UHD and Blu-ray special edition features:
New 4K digital master, approved by directors Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans, with Dolby Atmos soundtrack
One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and two Blu-rays with the film and special features
Full feature-length animatic, with a new introduction by Kang and Appelhans
New making-of documentary
Two video essays by filmmakers Taylor Ramos & Tony Zhou (Every Frame a Painting)
Lyric videos
Trailer
English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing and English descriptive audio
Collectible postcards featuring original illustrations by artists who worked on the film
PLUS: An essay by critic Karen Han
The film is presented on a 4K disc and a Blu-ray disc in the dual format release.
Seven lyrics videos are included for the songs How It’s Done, Soda Pop, Takedown, Free, Your Idol, Golden and What it Sounds Like. These are all essentially the corresponding scenes from the film with the lyrics on screen.
The trailer runs for two-and-a-half minutes and gives a decent overview of what to expect.
The rest of the extras are on a second Blu-ray and open with a full length animatic showing the film in a very early form. It is a wonderful inclusion which provides a great look at a rough cut of the film. There’s some marvellous artwork and I really enjoyed seeing the contrast between this and the finished film. An introduction by the two directors is also included which is a nice overview, albeit short at two minutes, of the animatic.
The documentary runs for 48 minutes and features a wealth of interviews from the conception of the film through the production and release. There is a lot of insight into the making of the film and background on those behind the camera. It feels very honest and candid and is a really good piece.
Taylor Ramos and Tony Zhou oversee an overview of the opening sequence featuring comments by key members of the crew. The 12-minute piece describes the sequence as essentially encapsulating everything about the film, and its themes. It’s an insightful piece that shows storyboards and gives a fantastic overview of the sequence.
Ramos and Zhou also provide a visual essay looking at the outstanding music in the film. The 14-minute piece gives an overview of some of the key elements the film covers such as music, technology, demonology and musical sequences. It takes us back to the earliest musicals through to the 1960s and The Beatles and birth of the music video and looks at how KPop has crafted its own version. I particularly enjoyed the comments on how the score emphasises themes or is used to convey the story. It’s a really perceptive piece which I enjoyed a lot.
In closing, Criterion have provided a fantastic release for the award-winning sensation KPop Demon Hunters. The all important image and sound quality is excellent, and there are some great extras including a wonderful documentary, two very good visual essays and the chance to see the movie in early animatic form. Highly recommended for fans of the movie, a fun musical, and animation.
Disc/Package: 