The animated film “KPop Demon Hunters” has become a global cultural phenomenon. To date, it is the most-watched film on Netflix, with more than 236 million views. The soundtrack has topped music charts worldwide, with four songs on the Global 100, including “Golden,” which reached number one on the Global 200.
I have wondered why this animated film has resonated with so many around the world. As a film with principal themes of atonement and self-actualization, it appeals to a nihilistic world longing for meaning and redemption. It speaks to some of the deepest longings of the human experience.
“KPop Demon Hunters” is an entertaining film about a female K-pop group, Huntrix, which also serves as the chosen protectors of Korean society against demonic forces led by King Gwi-Ma, who feeds on human souls. The intrepid group finds themselves in battle with a rival band, the Saja Boys—a boy band who, unbeknownst to their fans, are actually demons trying to steal the souls of Huntrix’s followers.
Utilizing humor, infectious K-pop music, and brilliant storytelling, the film is engaging from beginning to end. However, its greatest strength lies in its themes of redemption and self-understanding.
The idea of self-actualization is primarily explored through the chief protagonist, Rumi, the fearless leader of Huntrix. Rumi harbors a secret she has kept from the world as she pursues her quest to defeat the forces of darkness in Korean society. Although human, she is half demon and hopes to eradicate her demonic heritage—manifested through purple stripes on parts of her body—by cutting off the demonic world from the human dimension.
Rumi’s journey culminates in her song “This Is What It Sounds Like,” which appears at the end of the movie. Rumi declares:
Nothing but the truth now
Nothing but the proof of what I am
The worst of what I came from, patterns I’m ashamed of
Things that even I don’t understand
I tried to fix it, I tried to fight it
My head was twisted, my heart divided
My lies all collided
I don’t know why I didn’t trust you to be on my side
I broke into a million pieces, and I can’t go back
But now I’m seeing all the beauty in the broken glass
The scars are part of me, darkness and harmony
My voice without the lies, this is what it sounds like
Rumi ultimately embraces who she truly is—both the dark heritage and the luminous virtue that have guided her—and chooses to live an authentic life. This acceptance strengthens her resolve to fulfill her calling to defeat the forces of darkness in Korean society.
Themes of atonement emerge near the end of the film with Jinu, the dashing lead of the Saja Boys. Like Rumi, he is also half human, but through desperation and poor choices in his youth, he has become enslaved to Gwi-Ma, the king of demons.
Though he attempts to break free from his bondage to be with Rumi, Jinu’s plans are thwarted by Gwi-Ma. Ultimately, when Gwi-Ma attempts to kill Rumi, Jinu intervenes, sacrificing himself to save her. This redemptive act of self-sacrifice forms the climactic moment of the film’s dramatic action.
The movie’s theme of atonement parallels Christian ideas of redemption. Jesus taught, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).
Through his atoning work on the cross, Jesus gave himself as a sacrifice to save humanity from paying a debt we could not pay. Through his sacrifice, our sins are forgiven, and we are saved from “the wages of sin,” which is death (Romans 6:23).
“KPop Demon Hunters” is more than an animated film with great storytelling and catchy pop songs. It explores profound questions in a society grappling with nihilism and longing for redemption from the sins that plague them.
In many ways, it reminds us of the most remarkable story of redemption in human history—the story of the cross. Jesus died in our place so that we might be forgiven of our sins and inherit eternal life.
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Donald E. Williams is a United Methodist pastor and Duke University graduate. He completed his doctorate at Duke University in 2022 and is the author of An Investigation Into the Relationship Between Aristotelian Eudaimonia and Christian Discipleship: A Thomistic Perspective, Wipf and Stock Publishers.
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