‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Hits #1 at the Box Office Two Months After Netflix Streaming Premiere

Netflix may be questioning their entire business model this morning, as the mega popular animated hit KPop Demon Hunters is now the #1 movie at the domestic box office.

While the streaming service is usually averse to bringing their movies to theaters, they took a chance on KPop Demon Hunters given the massive success of the streaming title. A full two months after the movie debuted on Netflix, it was released in 1,700 theaters across the United States with a special sing-along presentation, and audiences showed up to experience the animated movie with a crowd. The film debuted to $18 million over the weekend!

The argument with streaming has long been that audiences aren’t showing up to see movies in theaters because they know they’ll be able to stream them at home within a few weeks, but the box office success of KPop Demon Hunters strongly suggests otherwise. Again, the movie has been available to watch at home for two months now, but audiences still showed up to experience it in a way they weren’t able to experience it at home. Netflix turned the theatrical exhibition of the movie into an event, and fans were more than eager to hand over their money.

While the typical course for movies is that they arrive in theaters first and at home on streaming second, KPop Demon Hunters has taken the complete opposite approach. And by building up its audience through word of mouth on Netflix these past two months, the animated movie was able to convert those Netflix subscribers into ticket-buyers.

Will this mark the beginning of a new era for Netflix or is KPop Demon Hunters merely a unicorn of a situation that the streamer will be treating as such? Your guess is as good as ours. But this notably marks the first time a Netflix movie has been #1 at the box office, so we wouldn’t be surprised if Netflix was having some very interesting conversations this week.

Unless the plans change, KPop Demon Hunters‘ theatrical release was a one-weekend experiment from Netflix, with the sing-along version of the movie added to their streaming service this morning. Expect the streamer to go all-in on the KPop Demon Hunters universe, with a sequel already being discussed alongside a potential live action adaptation of the movie.

In KPop Demon Hunters, “When Korean pop superstars Rumi, Mira, and Zoey aren’t selling out stadiums, they’re using their secret identities as demon hunters to protect their fans from ever-present supernatural danger. Together, they must face their biggest threat — an irresistible rival boy band of demons in disguise.”

The animated film is directed by Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans from a script they co-wrote with Danya Jimenez and Hannah McMechan.

Arden Cho, Ahn Hyo-seop, May Hong, Ji-young Yoo, Yunjin Kim, Joel Kim Booster, Liza Koshy, Daniel Dae Kim, Ken Jeong, and Byung Hun Lee star.

It’s time to seal the Honmoon.

KPOP DEMON HUNTERS SING-ALONG is now on Netflix pic.twitter.com/gEx6YOrROR

— Netflix (@netflix) August 25, 2025

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