‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Directors Discuss the Film’s Rise and Chart-Topping Soundtrack

Ever since its release on Netflix last month, the original animated film “KPop Demon Hunters” has burned up the internet — and the charts. The musical fantasy has topped the streamer’s global rankings and inspired countless memes, dance challenges (some even by K-pop stars), themed merchandise and fan art. The film’s equally blockbuster soundtrack has stormed the music charts, with eight of its songs landing in the Billboard Hot 100.

“KPop Demon Hunters” follows the members of a fictional K-pop girl group as they juggle demanding careers and fight to save the world from soul-stealing demons. The film’s directors, Maggie Kang (a veteran storyboard artist on films like “Rise of the Guardians” and “Puss in Boots” ) and Chris Appelhans (who directed “Wish Dragon”), spoke about the making of their movie and its unexpected rise as a global cultural phenomenon.

Here are edited excerpts from the conversation.

Maggie, the story behind “KPop Demon Hunters” was your idea. What convinced you that a film that combines disparate elements like K-pop, animation, traditional Korean art and mythology, and demons could resonate with so many different audiences?

MAGGIE KANG Well, nothing did. [Laughs] I was basically just trying to make something that I wanted to see: a movie that celebrated Korean culture. And for some reason, I landed on demonology. I thought the jeoseung saja [grim reapers in Korean mythology] — which is what the boys are at the end of the movie with the black hats and the black robes — was such an iconic image from my childhood that I was very scared of, so I knew that I wanted to feature that. And the thought of demons naturally led to demon hunters. I wanted to see female superheroes that were a lot more relatable, who like to eat and make silly faces. We weren’t trying to make them just pretty, sexy and cool. They had very real insecurities and showed that.

Demon hunting is usually done very secretly, so these girls needed a public-facing persona. I was also really wanting to do something K-pop-related. It was like, let’s just see if these two things can go together.