The animated Netflix film KPop Demon Hunters has gone viral, turning fictional K-pop idols into real chart-toppers, beating real-life K-pop bands BTS and BLACKPINK on U.S. Spotify.
KPop Demon Hunters dropped on Netflix on June 20, 2025, and almost immediately shattered expectations.
The story follows HUNTR/X, a K-pop girl group that moonlights as demon slayers, and their heated rivalry with the all-demon boy band, the Saja Boys. While the concept sounds like standard fantasy fare, what happened next wasn’t.
More than just viral, KPop Demon Hunters may be K-pop’s next big crossover success. Despite being animated, these idols didn’t just dominate the charts, they broke barriers for Korean music internationally.
Check out 15 facts you didn’t know about KPop Demon Hunters below.
1. The first drawing of Rumi was made over nine years ago, on April 21, 2016, according to the film’s director, Maggie Kang.
She retained her iconic braid from the very beginning.
2. Jinu’s pet tiger and magpie were unofficially named Derpy and Sussy by the film’s animators.
3. Rumi, Mira, and Zoey all have their own personal, unique traditional accessory called the norigae, which are considered good luck charms and traditionally worn with formal hanbok.
4. Saja means both “lion” and “grim reaper,” representing two sides of the Saja Boys’ personalities.
5. Jinu’s big secret is that he abandoned his mother and sister when he made the deal with Gwi-Ma.
But according to TikToker @wigglywobblytimeywimey, he would never have been allowed to bring them with him because only those invited by the king could live at the palace, and as a musician, Jinu was one of the lowest-ranking people allowed to live at the palace.
6. Netflix confirmed that “Golden” will be submitted for Oscar consideration in 2026.
If it is nominated, singer-songwriter EJAE will be the second ever musician of Korean descent to be nominated for the award.
7. All of the Saja Boys share the same CGI body except for Abby Saja, due to his muscles. Director Maggie Kang revealed that they “bulked him up like 20%.”
8. Jinu’s introductory song, “Jinu’s Lament,” was the only one performed by voice actor Ahn Hyo Seop.
He was previously a trainee in JYP, and trained along with the members of GOT7. His parts in “Soda Pop,” “Free,” and “Your Idol” were performed by Andrew Choi.
9. Derpy and Sussy represent the art style “kkachi horangi,” a style of traditional Korean art that pairs tigers with magpies.
@kenji_kun Kpop demon hunters tiger and the bird explained #kpopdemonshunters #korea #korean ♬ original sound – ᴋᴇɴᴊɪ ᴋᴜᴍᴀɢᴀɪ
In these paintings, the tiger is deliberately drawn to look foolish or comical, earning it the nickname “idiot tiger,” to mock the aristocratic yangban class. In contrast, the magpie is shown with grace and composure, standing in for the everyday people. So when Jinu comments on Sussy constantly stealing Derpy’s hat, a symbol of his nobility class status, he is saying that the bird is stealing the power, because the power belongs to the people.
10. The faceless demons that the HUNTR/X girls fight on the subway are called “dalgyal gwishin.”
It translates into egg ghost and is in reference to their egg-like appearance.
11. Jinu was alive in the 1600s, which was a time of political and cultural upheaval in Korea, before he gave up his soul to the demon lord Gwi-Ma.
12. The HUNTR/X girls are animated “on twos.”
Animator Zach (@no_the_robot) explains as two frames per pose, while the Saja Boys demons are animated on ones. Not only that, as Rumi goes through the process of accepting her demon side when singing “Free” with her demon confidant-slash-love interest, Jinu, she also begins to be animated on ones instead of twos to match the demons.
13. The instrument Jinu played when alive in the 1600s is called a bipa.
It was a traditional court instrument that was brought over from China in the 4th-7th century CE.
14. The only band member in Saja Boys and HUNTR/X who doesn’t fit into a KPOP archetype is, fittingly, Mystery.
According to Forbes, “When Kang asked her team why he doesn’t have a face, they told her to ‘trust us.’”
15. In the weeks since dropping on Netflix, KPop Demon Hunters made music history.
Both bands hit No. 1 on U.S. Spotify, with “Golden” by HUNTR/X as the highest-charting female K-pop group, and “Your Idol” by the Saja Boys as the highest-charting male band. They beat out not just each other, but real-world titans like BTS and BLACKPINK.
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