The show “K-Pop Demon Hunters” premiered on Netflix on Aug. 23 this year, and it quickly rose to become Netflix’s top movie. However, the lack of promotional content taken by the producer leads to the question: why and how did it become so popular in such a short time?
“K-Pop Demon Hunters” is an animated musical-movie created by Sony Pictures Animation and Netflix and took around seven years to make. The movie is centered around girl group Huntr/x, who by day are pop stars in Korea who create music to share with their fans. By night, they hunt demons that escape through the Honmoon, a barrier between the demon world and the human world strengthened by their music. However, HuntrIx’s goal to seal the Honmoon is disrupted by the arrival of a boy group called the Saja Boys. Like Huntr/x, they are idols by day. However, they are demons by night. Huntr/x and the Saja Boys constantly go head-to-head as pop stars and demons and hunters. Despite very little advertising, “K-Pop Demon Hunters” got millions of views in just the first couple weeks after its premiere, staying #1 on the movie leaderboard for five weeks. It is also the most watched movie ever on Netflix with 325 million views.
Like the Netflix rankings, the movie has also been a popular topic among the halls of Middleton High School (MHS)
“I think it’s popular because most people watched it so they could hate on it, and it turned out to be pretty okay because the animation and music [were] pretty good,” said student Mia Weiler.
Another student, Makayla Mcdonnell, explained that she liked it because “the music is great and the representation is awesome.”
Overall, most students thought the main reason it caught on so fast was because of its catchy music. Because of this, many students have added the songs from the movie to their playlists. Mcdonnell says, “I have them all on multiple playlists.” When asked how the music from the movie relates to music they normally listen to, many interviewees say that they enjoy the music.
“The soundtrack for KPDH [feels] like it was very similar to the K/C/J-pop I’ve heard in the past, and it is definitely at least a bit influenced at point by western pop music, [but] I’m not against listening [to K-pop] in the future,” said student Kenneth Bickett.
Mcdonnell’s response features a different perspective, saying that she is open to exploring similar genres and, “would try to look at groups that have songs like ‘Golden’ or ‘This is What it Sounds Like’ and mostly girl groups.”
Overall, it seems like the influence that “K-Pop Demon Hunters” has on the students here at MHS will continue to shape the conversations between students alongside the rest of the world.
