HOLLYWOOD - Netflix's smash hit "KPop Demon Hunters" -- a tale of good and evil incorporating traditional Korean mythology and set to a thumping soundtrack -- on Sunday won the Oscar for best animated feature.
"Golden," the film's infectious anthem about empowerment, self-reliance and personal growth, is up for an Oscar later in the night for best original song.
The movie -- co-produced with Sony Pictures Animation -- premiered on Netflix in June 2025, but quickly found a massive global following and is currently the streaming giant's most-watched original film of all time.
When a special singalong version was released in North American theaters for one weekend only, it easily topped the box office chart.
"This is for Korea and Koreans everywhere," co-director Maggie Kang told the audience, with co-director Chris Applehans and producer Michelle Wong at her side.
The movie tells the tale of HUNTR/X, a popular K-pop girl group whose members live double lives as weapons-wielding demon slayers. Their songs help create a magical barrier called the Honmoon that protects humanity.
The role of demon hunter is passed down over the generations.
The current trio -- Rumi, Mira and Zoey -- are sassy women who dress well but also are goofy and wolf down Korean food between performances and hunting missions.
They must square off against a demon boy band, the Saja Boys, who are sent by the demon lord Gwi-ma to weaken the Honmoon. A battle for humanity ensues.
The film borrows from the idea of shamanism -- the tradition of having intermediaries to interact with the spiritual world, and features sweeping recreations of Seoul's skyline.
Kang has explained the project was years in the making.
"This silly K-pop movie idea could represent so many aspects of my culture. Once I realised that, it was full force, making the most Korean movie I could make," she told The New York Times in an interview published in January.
"I wrote a lot of things in Korean first, in my head, and thought about, what is the best way to translate this emotion or dialogue into English?"
The main cast is made up of mostly Korean actors.
'Golden'
Developing the music was a years-long process.
"This concept is so wackadoo, the songs had to be fantastic for it to be accepted," Kang told the Times.
"Golden" -- which topped the charts in more than two dozen countries -- is the movie's musical centerpiece, featuring lyrics in English and Korean.
It is Rumi's battle cry, as she reveals to the world that she is also a half-demon.
"I'm done hidin', now I'm shinin' like I'm born to be," says the song, which was written by a team including Korean-American singer Ejae, who is Rumi's singing voice.
"We're goin' up, up, up, it's our moment / You know together we're glowin' / Gonna be, gonna be golden."
The tune has won a Golden Globe and a Critics Choice Award for best original song in a motion picture, and a Grammy for best song written for visual media.
Ejae has said in multiple interviews that her dreams of being a K-pop star were dashed after a decade of training when she was told she wouldn't cut it.
"Rejection is redirection. And so never give up. It's never too late to shine like you were born to be," Ejae said in January as she accepted her Golden Globe, borrowing from her own lyrics. - SUSAN STUMME / AFP