‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Director Thought About A Live-Action Version

Since its release last week, Netflix’s KPop Demon Hunters has reached No. 1 in 26 countries and the Top 10 in 93 countries. Critics and fans have praised the animated feature, directed by Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans, with a 96% Rotten Tomatoes score. The soundtrack has also generated buzz, hitting No. 1 on the iTunes Top Album and K-Pop Charts, as well as the Apple Music Pop and K-Pop Album Charts.

The film centers on Huntrix, a K-pop girl group who are secretly demon hunters sworn to protect their fans from supernatural threats. One of the hunters, Rumi (Arden Cho), has demon blood running in her veins, as we find out that her Hunter mother had a relationship with her Demon father. The circumstances of their relationship are never disclosed. Celine, a former Hunter and Rumi’s guardian, avoided talking about Rumi’s parentage, disregarding her demon side. Rumi – and the audience – are never given answers about her past.

Though Netflix hasn’t announced if there will be a sequel, Kang says there’s more to the story they wanted to tell – especially when it came to Rumi’s heritage as part Hunter and part Demon, and the reason behind Celine’s aversion towards demons.

“There are different versions [of Rumi’s story],” says Kang. Ultimately, we felt like that whole part of the story didn’t need to be told here. It was a tricky thing with the story. There are so many questions that are left unanswered.”

Some scenes were cut that answered these questions, but it didn’t feel like they belonged, as they changed the overall story. There’s so much they wanted to add – Rumi’s parentage, Celine’s background, and the mythology behind Derpy the tiger and Sussie the six-eyed bird.

“[Derpy and Sussie] live between these two worlds,” Kang reveals. It’s not a Demon. It’s not a Hunter, obviously. So, what is it? There’s a lot of mysteries and question marks that even I have thought about what that could be. We’re definitely thinking about that stuff.”

The KPop Demon Hunters creatives, crew, and actors all expressed their interest in a sequel. Kang has many more ideas for her characters and the story. After finishing her film, she did think about a live-action version of the animated film.

After watching the new live-action How To Train Your Dragon movie, she mentioned that director Dean DeBlois, who directed the original animated films, did a wonderful job. She thought what it would be like to have a live-action KPop Demon Hunters. She understands that comes with its own challenges.

“I really enjoyed [How To Train Your Dragon],” says Kang. I was sitting in the theater thinking, I wonder if anybody would want to see a live-action KPop Demon Hunters. What would that be like? How would that go?”

For now, everyone seems to be waiting for Netflix’s decision to greenlight a second film. Until then, Kang is enjoying the response to the film and the music. She’s so proud to see a Korean story resonate with everyone.

“I had so many crew members [and people] tell me how much this movie meant to them – and they weren’t even Korean,” says Kang. “They loved learning about our culture and being part of something different. [People have told me], “I’m watching more K-dramas,” and “I’m going to Korea,” or “I’m taking K-pop dance lessons.” It was just so amazing as a director to see people love this movie and fall in love with the culture. I really appreciated the studios for taking a risk on something that is a full Asian cast, too. I couldn’t have believed we could make this. It’s very surreal.”

KPop Demon Hunters is streaming now on Netflix.