Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Netflix
- "KPop Demon Hunters" is topping Netflix's global movie rankings and breaking records.The family animation film about a K-pop group has also produced chart-topping songs.This hit shows a path for Netflix to compete with Disney in animation, analysts said.
K-pop is taking charts of all types by storm — and Hollywood should take note.
Netflix's "KPop Demon Hunters" has ranked in the top two of the streamer's global movie charts in each of the five weeks since its mid-June debut, including back-to-back weeks in the top spot.
The animated film about demon-fighting Korean pop singers is, notably, gaining steam instead of slowing down. "KPop Demon Hunters" just had its best week with 25.8 million views, and Netflix said that's the first time one of its original movies has hit a new peak in its fifth week.
The movie's popularity propelled one of its original songs, "Golden," to the top of the Billboard Global 200 last week, though it's since slipped to second — replaced by another K-pop hit.
"KPop Demon Hunters" is now set to become Netflix's biggest animated original film ever, according to entertainment data provider Greenlight Analytics.
"Netflix should absolutely continue pushing forward in the medium," Brandon Katz, the insights and content strategy director at Greenlight Analytics, said of K-pop and family animation.
A Netflix spokesperson pointed to the streamer's top-10 list and an accompanying blog post.
How K-pop can make Netflix more like Disney
Korean shows like "Squid Game" have made waves for Netflix, which responded with a multibillion-dollar investment in the country's content.
K-pop is a natural extension of that strategy. It's wildly popular around the world, as the Billboard charts show, making it an ideal fit for a global streamer like Netflix. Disney+ has taken note with a concert and documentary about BTS, one of the biggest K-pop boy bands.
"The cultural interest and excitement surrounding K-pop continues to intensify," said Paul Dergarabedian, a media analyst at Comscore. He added: "The undeniable appeal of K-pop should have everyone's attention in the world of entertainment, studios, theaters, and content creators alike."
Katz went a step further, venturing that "KPop Demon Hunters" could become the backbone of franchises for Netflix, which "doesn't boast a century-long library of intellectual property like its legacy media rivals," specifically those that are family-friendly.
Sing-along franchises, especially those with K-pop, may be the icing on the cake. Netflix could create condensed sing-along versions of the hit songs from "KPop Demon Hunters" to keep its momentum going.
"It's the perfect modernization of Disney's long-running emphasis on family-friendly musicals," Katz said.
Family matters
"KPop Demon Hunters" isn't just a welcome win for Netflix's original film business — it also may be a blueprint for competing with rival Disney in family and animation.
Netflix set out to "beat Disney in family animation," cofounder and former CEO Reed Hastings told The Hollywood Reporter in 2021. But despite its best attempts, the streamer hasn't achieved that goal.
Although Netflix has had many family animation hits on its platform, they've mostly come from elsewhere. Popular kids series CoComelon generated huge viewership, but the cartoon is going to Disney+ when its Netflix deal ends in 2027. And while theatrical hits like "Minions" and "Despicable Me 4" topped the charts on Netflix, they were licensed from Universal's Illumination.
By contrast, "KPop Demon Hunters " is a Netflix original, though it was produced by Sony Animation and not the streamer's in-house team. The streaming giant could keep using these production partnerships while its own team masters the craft.
Netflix should make cracking original family films a priority, Dergarabedian said. PG-rated films have outgrossed their PG-13 peers at the box office in 2023, 2024, and 2025, he said, citing Comscore data. That includes blockbusters like Universal's "Super Mario Bros. Movie" and the live-action "How to Train Your Dragon," plus Disney's "Lilo & Stitch."
Katz said that "theatrical animation is arguably the best bang for your buck genre in Hollywood" since the pandemic. He said Netflix must nail the family genre, which already accounts for 15% of its global viewership, to keep Gen Alpha kids from going to YouTube.
"Establishing an emotional connection with young audiences provides Netflix with a direct path to the next generation of disposable income spenders," Katz said.
