There are two truths for every monster: that they want something from you, and that there’s a very specific way to take them out.
A zombie, for instance, drools for your brain but can’t survive a head injury. A vampire craves your blood but flees from the wooden stake. And a demon, according to KPop Demon Hunters, schemes for your soul but despises music.
Still, that doesn’t stop those demons from trying. For centuries, they’ve slithered their way into our world, hoping to snatch a soul away to feed to their fiery underworld lord, Gwi-Ma. It’s not an easy task, however, with those pesky Hunters protecting everyone.
Every generation, a new trio of Hunters arises to sing songs that ignite listeners’ souls and bring people together. Those ignited souls create a spiritual shield around the world, called the Honmoon, thatprevents most demons from breaking through. As for the ones who do, they’re easily identified by their strange markings and dispatched with a flurry of blows.
Each generation of Hunters longs for the day when the Honmoon becomes so strong that no demon could ever break through. And for modern-day Hunters Rumi, Mira and Zoey, that day seems to be approaching fast. To celebrate it, this K-pop trio of three young women, known musically as Huntrix, plans to release a new single that will finalize their victory.
But down in Gwi-Ma’s territory, a demon named Jinu schemes a new strategy: Instead of attacking the Hunters, why not take down their fanbase? So he and four other demons assume the forms of young attractive men and start a boy band, the Saja Boys. And as the public becomes enraptured by their songs instead of Huntrix’s, the Honmoon begins to weaken.
In response, Huntrix readies its voices and weapons.
Rumi pulls down her shirt sleeve, so no one sees the strange markings on her arm.
And they prepare for battle.
We’ll handle the more explicit spiritual stuff below, but let’s first talk about the true meaning behind the supernatural elements here.
It’s quickly revealed that Rumi is actually part-demon, which is the source of her strange markings—the very same ones that full demons have. Jinu tells her that they’re markings of shame, and they remind a demon of the constant misery they feel for something that they regret. And because Rumi is ashamed of the marks, she’s kept them hidden from her fellow bandmates.
However, Rumi learns that even though those markings indicate something she’s ashamed of, they don’t need to define who she is—a fact she helps Jinu realize, too. Whereas Rumi’s parental guardian hoped to keep the markings permanently hidden from the world, it’s only when they’re exposed that Rumi can grow into herself: Merely covering up the problem and pretending it doesn’t exist does not fix it.
That idea can easily resonate with many viewers who have their own “markings of shame” for things they regret. This aspect of the story serves as a positive reminder for kids and adults alike that the only way to escape shame is to expose the flaws or failures we’ve been hiding. And in doing so, we’ll often find others willing to walk alongside us in support, as Rumi does in the movie. While the film predominantly emphasizes accepting the scars of the past, there’s an implicit understanding that doing so is merely the first step toward growing deeper as a person.
Likewise, though others don’t receive marks, they also hide their insecurities: One man worries that he isn’t good enough to act as Huntrix’s manager; and Mira and Zoey likewise struggle with self-deprecating thoughts. These shameful feelings culminate in them all hearing mocking voices that put them under Gwi-Ma’s power—voices that tell them the only way they’ll ever be enough is if they submit to him. For Christians in particular, this is a powerful warning of how Satan can use our own insecurities to tempt us into sin, and how we must resist such temptations.
To preface, it’s important to note that the demons in KPop Demon Hunters aren’t the same as the demons of Christian theology. The creatures here remain evil spirits and mostly have appearances similar to the masks used in Korean Talchum dances (some later look more like Gollum from The Lord of the Rings.) And unlike Christianity, these creatures are more restless spirits than fallen angels: it’s revealed that Jinu, at least, was once a human, but he later became a demon after essentially making a deal with the devil, Gwi-Ma. And, while we’re on the topic, Gwi-Ma’s name simply translates to “ghost-demon.”
Still, the creatures long to feed human souls to Gwi-Ma. What’s more, they play on human shame and sin to corrupt people into following their wicked guidance. Because some people feel deep shame, for their actions, they hear voices in their heads telling them that they’ll never be enough—unless they come to Gwi-Ma. We’re explicitly told that this is “your demon talking.”
The Saja Boys sing a song filled with religious temptations, telling their audience that the band can be their idol and sanctuary, that they’re happy to take listeners souls and that they’re the only ones who love their sins. A Huntrix song calling out the Saja Boys contains the line: “I see your face, and it’s ugly as sin.” Jinu says demons are constantly stuck feeling shame and misery.
As Huntrix sings, the souls of those they touch with their music light up, strengthening the Honmoon. Some of those souls float around the girls as they fight, too, empowering them. Someone gives away his soul.
We’re introduced to two spirit animals as well, a tiger and a magpie, who exist in the film to deliver letters. The duo is a common sighting in Korean folk paintings to depict the common man (the magpie) mocking the ruling authority (the tiger).
When the young women in Huntrix meet the Saja Boys, they literally salivate over the guys’ attractiveness. One of the boys, aptly named “Abby,” loses his shirt, revealing six-pack abs and causing Zoey’s face to turn red as she ogles him (Zoey and Mira’s obsession with his abs becomes a recurring joke, temporarily flustering them and causing popcorn to shoot from their eyes to indicate their heated reaction). Abby later signs sketched portraits of his abs.
One man calls another guy “my handsome co-host.” In the background of one scene, two men clutch each other as they cheer for Huntrix.
The members of Huntrix enter into and later use a bathhouse; in either case, nothing is seen save for a man in a towel. Obsessive fans speculate that the Huntrix girls are dating some of the Saja Boys. In one romance-themed song, the Saja Boys sing, “You’re my soda pop/Gotta drink every drop.” The Huntrix trio wears tight outfits that reveal their midriffs.
Rumi is part-demon herself, as noted above, the offspring of a Hunter and a demon. But there’s no explanation of why or how such a union occurred.
As the Saja Boys begin to find their footing, they’re able to snatch some souls away (depicted as glowing blue orbs). We see the orbs as they’re fed into Gwi-Ma, who is a giant fire. We never see the people they target die onscreen, but a news report mentions a large uptick in missing people. (And when Huntrix investigates a train, the people previously traveling in it have completely vanished). We do, however, see one demon suck the soul out of a man, and the scene cuts away halfway through.
The girls slay hundreds of demons with their respective blades. There’s no blood, as the demons simply puff away in a cloud of pink glitter when slain. Still, one instance depicts the demons as they’re sliced in half (“bleeding” the same glitter). Another encounter leaves the girls marginally cut and bruised. Someone asks a woman to slay her, but the woman refuses.
One character perishes via disintegration to save others. A demon dies when Gwi-Ma expands, enveloping the underling in its fire.
The worst we hear is “dang” and a couple instances of “jeez.” Someone yells that she’s ready to “kick their butts.”
None.
For a publicity stunt, Saja Boys appear on a show in which they’re challenged to drink as much hot sauce as possible. For some unexplained reason, they’re all dressed up in bibs and drink from baby bottles.
A man abandons his family. Mira belches. Huntrix sings, “Mirror, mirror, who’s the baddest? Us.” The aforementioned tiger spirit may initially be frightening to younger audiences.
KPop Demon Hunters wasn’t the film I expected to deliver a commentary on the human condition. But nevertheless, here we are.
There’s obviously a lot of spiritual stuff going on here involving demons and souls and whatnot. After all, the core of the story is about a trio of pop stars slaying demons to protect humanity. But if we look below the surface of these themes, we find a message that resonates with the reality of our struggles with sin, shame and depravity.
We’ve all done things that we regret. Often, we can cling so tightly to them, even if everyone else has long since forgiven us or forgotten them. In doing so, we cling to weights that threaten to plunge us into the depths of despair—or at the least, prevent us from moving forward. And in its “markings of shame,” KPop Demon Hunters offers a literal depiction of that guilt. This theme is particularly resonant when the movie’s satanic stand-in, Gwi-Ma, begins picking at those insecurities to encourage the protagonists to inadvertently destroy themselves.
I don’t expect that KPop Demon Hunters intended its message to synergize with the Christian idea of moving on from the power of our sins because of the salvation we have in Christ. Indeed, the film itself takes a more humanistic approach—that we can overcome our sins (or at least accept our flaws) through self-actualizing effort. Still, that message is but short leap to make for the Christian parent who’d like to connect it to a more explicitly biblical one.
Admittedly, making that leap does require viewers to dive into the murky spirituality of the film. These demons may not be of the biblical variety, but they are malevolent entities nonetheless. And a couple violent and sensual moments in this song-interspersed PG film may prove too much for parents of younger kids.
Kennedy Unthank studied journalism at the University of Missouri. He knew he wanted to write for a living when he won a contest for “best fantasy story” while in the 4th grade. What he didn’t know at the time, however, was that he was the only person to submit a story. Regardless, the seed was planted. Kennedy collects and plays board games in his free time, and he loves to talk about biblical apologetics. He’s also an avid cook. He thinks the ending of Lost “wasn’t that bad.”
