Netflix’s “K-pop Demon Hunters” Ranks as Most-Watched Series Ever; OST “Golden” Tops Billboard Chart

Netflix’s original animated series “K-pop Demon Hunters” has become the most-watched title in Netflix’s history, including both film and show categories. With a cumulative viewership of 266 million, it surpassed “Squid Game 1” from 2021 with 265.2 million views and “Wednesday 1” from 2022 with 252.1 million views. Released on June 20, the series follows a fictional K-pop girl group named HUNTR/X as they fight demons and protect the world through music. It was produced by Sony Pictures Animation, an American subsidiary of Japan’s Sony Group, and directed by Canadian-Korean filmmaker Maggie Kang. The fact that K-pop idols are the main characters and traditional Korean culture is included demonstrates that K-pop has established itself as a global storytelling resource. The series’ greatest strength lies in its original soundtrack. The theme song “Golden” performed by HUNTR/X reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 on August 16 and has remained at the top for three consecutive weeks. This is the first K-pop song to reach the summit of the Hot 100 in two years and the first song sung by a K-pop girl group to achieve this milestone. From August 22 to 28, “Golden” recorded 35.3 million official streams in the United States, along with 19.7 million radio plays and 9,000 physical sales. These numbers were further boosted by the release of a singalong version in North American theaters from August 23 to 24. The series’ storyline and visual presentation have also received praise. It breaks away from traditional K-pop stereotypes that rely on headlines, subtitles, and lead paragraphs, portraying the three main characters—Rumi, Joy, and Mira—as strong and unique superheroines. Professor Ray Seul of Berklee College of Music described the portrayal of female characters in “K-pop Demon Hunters” as a “concept that offers a completely new perspective to the K-pop structure.” Despite the series’ success, domestic industry officials and the government are focusing on the fact that it was produced by an American company rather than a Korean one. Tiing CEO Choi Ju-hee said, “I often wonder what would have happened if a show like ‘K-pop Demon Hunters’ were created in our country,” while Deputy Minister of Science and ICT Ryu Je-myeong noted, “I wonder if we couldn’t have produced ‘K-pop Demon Hunters’ ourselves,” emphasizing the need to strengthen domestic production ecosystems. This highlights a structural issue: although K-pop and K-content are achieving success on a global scale, the domestic platforms and production infrastructure supporting them remain weak. To capitalize on the “K-pop Demon Hunters” craze, Everland plans to open a themed zone on September 26 in collaboration with Netflix. Visitors there will be able to experience characters from HUNTR/X and the Lion Boys, as well as K-style snacks and mission-based games.