Everyone’s been hunting for Huntr/x costumes.
Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos: Spirit Halloween
Who is everyone dressing up, up, up as this spooky season? On Google’s “Frightgeist” roundup of Halloween search trends, the top-five spots are currently all occupied by characters from KPop Demon Hunters: Rumi, Zoey, Mira, Jinu, and Baby Saja. (The film’s derpy tiger is also hanging out in eighth place.) Netflix’s officially licensed Huntr/x costumes at Spirit Halloween have all sold out online, with multiple outlets reporting last week that physical retail stores were also struggling to keep up with demand. (Good Morning America declared a “KPop Demon Hunters Halloween costume shortage” on October 27, while a New York Times headline on October 30 wished those hunting for KPop Demon Hunters costumes “good luck.”) Netflix itself has acknowledged that the supply hasn’t matched the demand. Interest was “soft” when the streamer approached licensing partners and retailers 12 to 18 months before the film’s release, Netflix said in a statement to the Times, pointing out that retailers are typically less inclined to gamble on products for new IP.
Despite the scarcity of official costumes, kids and adults alike have found a way to replicate looks from the most-watched Netflix film of all time by relying on knockoffs or making the outfits themselves. Famous fans are getting in on the trend, too: “I think I’m actually more obsessed than my daughters! we stan K pop demon hunters in this house,” Little Mix’s Leigh-Anne Pinnock captioned a TikTok of herself in costume as Rumi. Other celebrities who have channeled KPop Demon Hunters characters this spooky season so far include Eugene Lee Yang as Jinu, Trisha Paytas as Baby Saja, and Rei Ami — Zoey’s singing voice — as Gwi-Ma.
Netflix, which is also selling “character-inspired apparel” on its online store, says it’s working to “bring products to market as quickly as possible.” The streamer signed a deal this month to make both toy titans Mattel and Hasbro “co-master” licensees for KPop Demon Hunters toys, collectibles, plushies, games, and role-playing products that will be out next year. Yes, after December. Parents might have to get crafty again this Christmas.
