'K-Pop Demon Hunters' breaks Netflix viewing records

The animated film "K-Pop Demon Hunters" has become the most-watched movie in Netflix history.

According to Netflix’s official site Tudum, as of Aug. 27, the cumulative view count for K-Pop Demon Hunters reached 236 million, surpassing the previous record held by the 2021 film Red Notice (230.9 million) by more than 5 million views. The record was achieved just over two months after the film’s release on June 20.

The cumulative view count of "K-Pop Demon Hunters" also ranks third across all Netflix content, including dramas and variety shows. Currently, the all-time No. 1 is "Squid Game Season 1" with 265.2 million views, followed by "Wednesday Season 1" with 252.1 million.

"K-Pop Demon Hunters" could climb even higher in the rankings. Netflix calculates its final viewership rankings based on cumulative counts over 91 days following a release. With about three weeks remaining in its tracking period, the film has a chance to surpass both the all-time No. 1 and No. 2 spots.

The popularity of the original soundtrack (OST) is also rising. The BBC of the United Kingdom praised the fictional girl group "HuntRix" and boy group "SajaVoice" featured in the film, saying, “Based solely on chart performance, they have become the greatest K-pop idols of all time.” The song “Golden,” which topped the Billboard Hot 100 earlier this month, slipped to second place last week but has reclaimed the No. 1 spot this week..

This week, four songs from the K-Pop Demon Hunters OST entered the Billboard Hot 100 top 10 simultaneously: “Golden,” “Your Idol” (No. 4), “Soda Pop” (No. 5), and “How It’s Done” (No. 10). Billboard noted that this is the first time four tracks from a single soundtrack have achieved the feat.


김태언 기자 beborn@donga.com