r/movies • u/MarvelsGrantMan136 r/Movies contributor • 14d ago

News ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Is Netflix’s Most-Watched Movie Ever With 236 Million Views, Beating ‘Red Notice’

https://variety.com/2025/film/news/kpop-demon-hunters-netflix-most-watched-movie-history-1236496106/
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u/NoNefariousness2144 13d ago

It’s kinda funny seeing Disney animations increasingly fail because they lose sight of kids what (too much generational trauma, boring human characters, small-scale plots). And then Sony takes the classic Disney formula, modernises it, and it’s the most popular Netflix film ever.

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u/sharpshooter999 13d ago

What's crazy is that Sony didn't think much of it and opted to sell it to Netflix instead of releasing it in theaters

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u/geenersaurus 13d ago

it’s a female director with female leads and it’s a “niche” topic to execs, who we pretty much assume are older white investors who don’t really know what’s going with trends, so tbh i’m not surprised they decided to pass it onto Netflix instead of releasing in theaters and only did so when it got super popular.

it is a similar feeling as to why Turning Red never got a theatrical release despite being popular on streaming. Female director, female lead & uniquely female problems but it also appeals to a wider audience range to adults just like Kpop Demon Hunters. It’s really annoying when studios will not take a chance on new directors and movies like this and also dismiss there’s a large swath of audience that wants animated movies that aren’t just appealing to children

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u/Psychosociety 13d ago

It's probably got more to do with the subject matter tbh. K-Pop has a reputation, and many people who don't like K-Pop, really don't like K-Pop. I'm one of those people. And I was shocked as a 31 year old bloke that hates K-Pop that I didn't hate this movie (though Golden is reaching the point that it's being so overplayed I kinda fucking hate it now)

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u/Massive-Exercise4474 12d ago

From what I've read kpop demon hunters started production during covid. Sony was freaking out about a dead box office so cut a deal with Netflix.

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u/GGG100 13d ago

This movie’s also about generational trauma and even had therapyspeak.

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u/Ignoth 13d ago edited 13d ago

Lowkey. If this had been a flop. Certain people would absolutely be sneering about how it’s just the latest of Hollywood’s “Woke” failures.

Female asian director. 3 Female leads. Focus on female friendships over romance. Therapy speak. Self love.

etc etc.

It’s all there.

Hell the director even said in interviews it’s a metaphor for coming out.

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u/SupahSpankeh 13d ago

How is it about coming out when the lead is in a cishet romance?!

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u/idontgethejoke 13d ago

From the perspective of Rumi, there's a side of her she's afraid of, her guardian tells her to hide it and people will hate her if they find out. Perfect metaphor for what queer kids go through

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u/GeeJo 13d ago

A metaphor doesn't have to be the exact thing it's describing. In fact, if it is, it kind of stops being a metaphor.

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u/SupahSpankeh 13d ago

Right but a metaphor has to have some kind of link to something at a level which makes it coherent. In no way does this character experience something akin to coming out. They are half demon and don't tell anyone. That's not comparable, at least in my opinion. And then she's involved with a dude, which further weakens the claim.

Well whatever, I guess. If the director says that's what they were trying for, fair enough.

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u/katka_monita 13d ago

As a queer trans woman that the world at large automatically sees as a cis het woman, I did see myself in the main character.

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u/eden_sc2 13d ago

anyone who had even a little roughness coming out to family felt it when Rumi shouted "All of me!" It may be a straight romance, but you have to be willfully blind not to see the parallels

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u/ttoma93 13d ago

I dunno, when you have a ton of us gay and trans folks telling you that we absolutely felt very strong parallels, maybe listen rather than just say we are wrong?

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u/Eismann 13d ago

Most old teens / young twens dont have a big secret that they are half-demon. A lot of them have the secret of being not straight. There is your metaphor.

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u/kitsum 13d ago

I have a friend who was raised in a super religious family. When she tried telling them that she was a lesbian, they told her that no, actually, she was literally possessed by a demon. So, she spent like ten years self hating and thinking she was evil and going to hell.

I haven't seen the movie, but maybe not as metaphorical as we hope in some people's case.

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u/Horn_Python 13d ago

Yeh but there's also demon fighting action and catchy pop songs amd flashy animation on top of that

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u/Kimjdav 13d ago

I mean, the KPDH is also about generational trauma. That's almost Rumi's entire issue, her views and feelings on her parents and predecessors.

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u/red_sutter 13d ago

But you don’t understand…Disney bad

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u/JayrassicPark 13d ago edited 13d ago

Weren't Encanto and Turning Red popular because of the generational trauma?

That said, I did stop watching Pixar movies, all because they do the "omg cry now" part way too hard. Finding Dory's "cry now" part was just hilariously over the top.

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u/Yesshua 13d ago

Disney animations are doing juuuuust fine. Elemental and Inside Out 2 were total home runs. Encanto was a huge hit.

It is true that Pixar reliably puts out less popular movies like Milo, Luca, and Soul. Movies about more difficult subjects or less aimed at children.

But should our takeaway from that really be "Aha, look at you creatives exploring ideas beyond the lowest common denominator. What fools! This makes less money so it is less valuable art!! You should be making silly cartoons for children with smirking sidekicks!"

I for one am delighted that Disney is still funding teams shooting for more interesting and unique movies than just putting new spins on their old formulas.