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2026 Oscars | Why KPop Demon Hunters Is Absolutely Getting Into Best Animated Feature
Credit: KPop Demon Hunters (Netflix, Sony Pictures Animation)
Sony Pictures Animation’s KPop Demon Hunters has emerged as 2025’s surprise hit, arguably reaching phenomenon status. The film holds a 97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 58 critic reviews. The soundtrack has been dominating the charts with the single “Golden” topping the Billboard Global 200. After six weeks on Netflix, it’s accumulated over 26 million views, being cited as the streamer’s most-watched original animated film ever. Sequels, a stage musical, and (sigh) a live-action remake are reportedly on the table. Netflix might not have expected KPop Demon Hunters to be an awards player when they picked it up, but they know what they have now. Not only is “Golden” being pushed for Best Original Song consideration, but KPop Demon Hunters seems like the Best Animated Feature frontrunner as of writing.
Yet, many awards experts seem hesitant to predict it even for a nomination at this point. Clayton Davis of Variety currently doesn’t have the film in his Best Animated Feature predictions. At Next Best Picture, most of the staff members have it outside of their top five predictions. (Update: KPDH has since gone up in the NBP odds while Davis moved it into his predictions). Admittedly, it’s understandable why some would be skeptical. After all, KPop Demon Hunters doesn’t sound like an awards-baity title. Then again, neither did The Boss Baby. We’re also early in the season, with several months left for Arco, Scarlet, or something else to become the new favorite. KPop Demon Hunters might not maintain its frontrunner spot as the year goes on, but I’m convinced it’s at least safe for the nomination. Here are five reasons why it’s a done, done, done deal.
It's their moment!
— Netflix (@netflix) July 29, 2025
KPop Demon Hunters is Netflix's most-watched original animated film of ALL TIME. pic.twitter.com/zHpijRAzT6
1. Netflix Knows How to Campaign
Netflix dropped KPop Demon Hunters on their platform with little fanfare. Now that it’s become an organic hit for the streamer, the awards department is going to pull out all the stops. Some have argued that Netflix’s priorities with shift with the release of Alex Woo’s In Your Dreams, which will be dropping on November 14 amid award season. Netflix also has Phil Johnston’s The Twits slated for this year, although a release date has yet to be announced. We don’t even have a trailer yet, calling its Oscar prospects into question. (Update: The Twits has now been announced for an October 17, 2025 release). While the verdict is still out on The Twists, Genndy Tartakovsky’s Fixed probably isn’t going to be the Academy’s cup of taint, er… I mean tea.
As for In Your Dreams, if it falls below expectations, Netflix will channel all of their resources into KPop Demon Hunters. Of course, In Your Dreams could be another hit for Netflix, maybe even becoming the Best Animated Feature frontrunner. That doesn’t mean Netflix can’t get two animated films nominated. Animation giants like Disney and Pixar have gotten multiple nominations in one year. Netflix has too. Klaus, which Netflix Animation co-produced, and I Lost My Body, which Netflix distributed in the U.S., both got nominated in 2019. The following year, Netflix scored two more nominations for Over the Moon and A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon.
KPop Demon Hunters shares much in common with The Sea Beast, which was Netflix’s most-watched animated movie for a period. Everyone knew Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio would be Netflix’s Oscar darling that year. Yet, Sea Beast still managed to get a nomination, despite many assuming the Academy would favor My Father’s Dragon or Wendell and Wild. KPop Demon Hunters might be this year’s Sea Beast… or…
Credit: Nimona (Netflix)
2. It’s This Year’s Nimona
The skepticism surrounding KPop Demon Hunters echoes another Netflix film, Nimona. A swan song for Blue Sky Studios, though Annapurna Pictures brought it to the finish line, Nimona quickly gained a cult following when it debuted in June 2023. Yet, few took it seriously as an Oscar contender until later that season. All eyes were initially on Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget to be Netflix’s big Oscar player. While the Chicken Run sequel was well-liked, it didn’t even get nominated for the Oscar. Nimona did, in addition to winning two Annie Awards. KPop Demon Hunters and Nimona are cut from the same rebellious cloth, outsiders that triumph over tradition.
Credit: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (Paramount Pictures)
3. It’s Not Another Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
KPop Demon Hunters has also drawn parallels to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, both being about crime-fighting teams and having a Spider-Verse-esque aesthetic. Unlike Nimona, Mutant Mayhem was denied an Oscar nomination, despite widespread acclaim. Some believe that KPop Demon Hunters may meet the same fate, although Mutant Mayhem had two additional hurdles to overcome. Firstly, it hit theaters the same year as Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, which paved the way for Mutant Mayhem and garnered slightly better reviews. There was only room for one in that race, and voters favored Spider-Verse. Secondly, as great as Mutant Mayhem might’ve been, it was still a Ninja Turtles movie. Unless it breaks new ground like Spider-Verse, the Animation Branch will always be hesitant when it comes to IP. KPop Demon Hunters need not worry, as it is a 100% original project.
4. Voters Will Embrace Originality
It’s never been harder for original ideas to rise above a sea of sequels, reboots, and adaptations. Even when something unique comes along, audiences don’t always seek it out. Like Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, KPop Demon Hunters found its audience primarily through word of mouth. It was the brainchild of Maggie Kang, who’d go on to direct the film with Chris Appelhans. KPop Demon Hunters wasn’t just an original concept, but a personal project for Kang, being born in Seoul before moving to Canada, where she studied animation. You can sense the filmmakers’ passion for Korean culture, which rubs off on viewers, even those who aren’t K-pop fans. Animators can identify with how difficult it is to get an original pitch green-lit at a major Hollywood studio. As such, branch members won’t just feel compelled to nominate KPop Demon Hunters. They’ll be excited to vote for it. When Chris Sanders praises your film on social media, you know it’s beloved by the industry at large:
5. It’s Eclipsed the Competition (So Far)
KPop Demon Hunters is by far 2025’s most talked about animated film… in the U.S. at least. Worldwide, Ne Zha 2 is the highest-grossing animated movie of all time. Roughly 1.1% of the Chinese epic’s intake stemmed from the U.S., although more people in the States will have a chance to see it with A24 releasing an English dub in August. For now, KPop Demon Hunters has captured the zeitgeist, eclipsing the good (The Bad Guys 2, Dog Man), the bad (Smurfs), and the ugly (Sneaks). Some still believe that Pixar’s Elio will get a Best Animated Feature nomination, despite underwhelming box office. With positive reviews on its side, Elio could compensate for its financial losses with Oscar gold. Does it really have a better shot than KPop Demon Hunters, though?
Credit: Elio (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, Pixar Animation Studios)
Some might say, “yes,” given the so-called “Pixar mafia.” Pixar’s stranglehold on Best Animated Feature is weakening, however. The once-reigning studio hasn’t won in over three years, with Inside Out 2, Elemental, and Turning Red settling for nominations. Elio wasn’t a box office giant like Inside Out 2 or a sleeper hit like Elemental. Time will only tell if it can become a streaming hit like Turning Red. Ironically, Turning Red shares a fair deal in common with KPop Demon Hunters, both being from Asian-Canadian filmmakers who clearly have a fond nostalgia for boy bands. Domee Shi also co-directed Elio, although that film may share more parallels with Cars 2, Monsters University, The Good Dinosaur, and Lightyear, none of which got nominated at the Oscars.
While Elio is better than the aforementioned films, even its fans likely wouldn’t rank it among Pixar’s best. If there is indeed a “Disney mafia,” as some claim, the Mouse’s voting bloc seems more inclined to gravitate toward Zootopia 2, which is releasing closer to awards season. That said, Zootopia 2 is just one of several films that could steal KPop Demon Hunters’ thunder. After Flow’s success, all eyes are on independent animated features like Little Amélie or the Character of Rain, A Magnificent Life, and The Square to break out in a big way. In KPop Demon Hunters, Huntr/x runs the town until rival music group Saja Boys starts attracting their fans. This award season could follow a similar trajectory with another animated film eventually eclipsing KPop Demon Hunters. For now, though, its odds of a nomination are golden.
Nick Spake is the Author of Bright & Shiny: A History of Animation at Award Shows Volumes 1 and 2. Available Now!
