This summer should have been the Summer of Superman according to James Gunn, but there has been another movie that has been inescapable in the last two months and that is KPop Demon Hunters. The animated musical fantasy has dominated the 
Netflix chart since it was released back in July, remaining at #1 for almost the entire time, and subsequently breaking records as Netflix’s first theatrical chart-topper after the release of a sing-along version. However, it could have been different if Sony had not sold the movie to the streaming as part of a larger content deal.
Speaking at the Bank of America conference last week, Sony Pictures CEO Ravi Ahuja broke his silence on the decision the company took to not release KPop Demon Hunters themselves and subsequently lose out on a potential billion-dollar box office monster. He said:
“Obviously, in hindsight, it’s such a big hit. It’s K-Pop-themed, very specific film. Netflix paid the whole cost, plus a profit premium. At the time, it made sense. But now you look at the success and think maybe it could have been theatrical.It started out on Netflix and then word of mouth made it grow in theatrical – that’s a lot harder to do. It can be done.”
And done it was. KPop Demon Hunters’ actual box office was estimated to be somewhere in the region of $40 million, and the film technically topped the chart after its sing-along event over just two days. However, as Netflix does not disclose their profits from limited screenings, the estimate is all anyone has to go on. Needless to say, though, the film was an unprecedented success, and even while it was in theaters for two days, KPop Demon Hunters remained at the top of the Netflix chart. Immediately after the movie’s short stint in cinemas, the sing-along version was also added to the streaming platform and joined the original version at the top of the chart. The film has since become Netflix’s biggest ever movie, and is nowhere near done yet.
Sony Stands By the Decision to Pass What Could Have Been Their Biggest Ever Hit to Netflix
For Ahuja, KPop Demon Hunters’ success on Netflix is not something he believes might have been the same if Sony had released the movie themselves. Naturally, that is exactly what you would want to think after giving away something that could have potentially been the biggest movie of the year, and just possibly even bigger than Spider-Man. Ahuja continued:
“I think it was in the right home. Our mission is to make great content and find the right home. And I think ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ right home was Netflix. Could it have been theatrical? It’s hard to say. It’s possible but I don’t think it’s so obvious.”
Naturally, there was very little time between KPop Demon Hunters blowing up around the world and talk of a sequel being on everyone’s lips. Obviously, with Netflix owning the property, but Sony being behind making the movie, there was a deal to be thrashed out between the two companies, which resulted in two further movies being commissioned, with Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans returning to write and direct. Ahuja concluded:
“The goal of the deal was to make hits. One great thing about being an independent is we’re happy when our clients do well. So they did well. There’s an ongoing conversation about terms, and not even so much in film or on the TV side, is whether the right terms are being used, whether streamers can actually pay less but get back more rights. And I’ve told all the streamers, we’re very open to that, so we’re having more of those conversations. If you think about ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ in that light, I think we would always rather bet on ourselves.”
KPop Demon Hunters
- Release Date
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June 20, 2025
- Runtime
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96 minutes
- Director
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Chris Appelhans, Maggie Kang
- Writers
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Hannah McMechan, Chris Appelhans, Maggie Kang, Danya Jimenez
- Producers
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Aron Warner
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