KPop Demon Hunters Demolishes Disney with Perfect Annie Awards Sweep

A film rooted in Korean mythology and K-Pop culture just swept all 10 Annie Award nominations, shutting out Disney and Pixar at animation's biggest ceremony. The Korean Wave conquers Hollywood animation.

HITKULTR

February 24, 2026

#Netflix#Hallyu#KPop Demon Hunters#Annie Awards#Korean Animation#Sony Pictures Animation#K-Culture#Oscar Nominations

A K-Pop girl group fighting demons rooted in Korean mythology just shut out Disney at animation's biggest night. Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans' KPop Demon Hunters swept all 10 of its nominations at the 53rd Annie Awards on February 21, 2026, a perfect 10-for-10 run that sent both Elio and Zootopia 2 home empty-handed.

This is not just an animation story. This is the Korean Wave rewriting the rules of Hollywood from the inside out.

Huntrix, the K-Pop girl group from KPop Demon Hunters, in their official promotional image — The Huntrix trio in their signature look. Image: Sony Pictures Animation / Netflix

A Perfect Sweep

The Sony Pictures Animation film, distributed by Netflix, won every single category it was nominated in: Best Feature, Best Direction, Best Voice Acting, Best Production Design, Best Music, Best Writing, Best Character Design, Best Character Animation, Best FX, and Best Editorial. Disney/Pixar's Elio also had 10 nominations. It won zero. Zootopia 2, the highest-grossing animated film of all time, also walked away with nothing.

The sweep cements KPop Demon Hunters as the clear frontrunner for Best Animated Feature at the 98th Academy Awards next month, where it will compete against Elio, Zootopia 2, Acro, and Little Amelie.

Korean Heritage at the Core

Director Maggie Kang, born in Seoul and raised in Toronto, first pitched the concept in 2018. The film follows Huntrix, a K-Pop girl group who lead double lives as demon hunters, battling the Saja Boys and the villain Gwi-Ma, all drawn from Korean mythology and demonology. Kang has spoken openly about drawing on her Korean heritage to create something that felt culturally authentic rather than generically "Asian."

The voice cast reads like a who's who of Korean and Korean-American talent. Arden Cho leads as Rumi, delivering a performance that won her the Annie for Best Voice Acting. Ahn Hyo-seop, one of K-Drama's biggest leading men, voices the complex antagonist-turned-ally Jinu. Lee Byung-hun, a titan of Korean cinema, brings menace to the demon ruler Gwi-Ma. Daniel Dae Kim, Ken Jeong, Yunjin Kim, May Hong, and Ji-young Yoo round out a cast that represents multiple generations of Korean talent in Hollywood.

The Huntrix members reacting in their apartment, a still from KPop Demon Hunters — Rumi, Mira, and Zoey in a lighter moment from the film. Image: Sony Pictures Animation / Netflix

The Numbers Tell the Story

Beyond the awards, the cultural impact is staggering. KPop Demon Hunters is Netflix's most-watched original title of all time with over 500 million views. The soundtrack has been streamed over 11 billion times and became the first film soundtrack to place four songs simultaneously in the Billboard Hot 100 top ten. It earned double platinum certification in the U.S. by October 2025. The film holds a 92% score on Rotten Tomatoes and a 7.5 on IMDB.

Produced on a budget of over $100 million, the film also received a limited theatrical run, including a sing-along version, which became the widest theatrical release by number of theaters for any Netflix film and the first to top the U.S. box office.

The Hallyu Wave Hits Animation

Korean culture has already conquered music through BTS and BLACKPINK. It reshaped global television with Squid Game and Crash Landing on You. Korean cinema won Best Picture at the Oscars with Parasite. But animation was the one space where Korean cultural identity had not yet broken through on this scale.

KPop Demon Hunters changes that. It is not a Korean film made for Korean audiences. It is a Korean story, built on Korean mythology, told through the lens of K-Pop culture, produced by a major Hollywood studio, and delivered to a global audience of hundreds of millions. The Annie Awards sweep is validation that the rest of the industry recognizes what audiences already knew: this film is exceptional.

What Comes Next

The Oscar ceremony looms. A win for Best Animated Feature would make KPop Demon Hunters the first film rooted in Korean mythology to take home the prize, and the first Netflix original animated film to do so. A sequel is already in development.

For the broader Hallyu movement, this Annie Awards sweep is another milestone in a decade-long march. Korean stories are not niche anymore. They are the mainstream. And with Maggie Kang's deeply personal vision leading the charge, animation's next chapter might just be written in Korean.

Fans Also Ask

What are the Annie Awards?

The Annie Awards are the highest honors in the animation industry, presented annually by ASIFA-Hollywood since 1972. Categories include Best Animated Feature, Best Direction, Best Voice Acting, and various technical awards. The 53rd Annie Awards ceremony was held on February 21, 2026.

How many Annie Awards did KPop Demon Hunters win?

KPop Demon Hunters won all 10 of its Annie Award nominations at the 53rd ceremony: Best Feature, Best Direction, Best Voice Acting, Best Production Design, Best Music, Best Writing, Best Character Design, Best Character Animation, Best FX, and Best Editorial. Disney's Elio and Zootopia 2 won zero awards.

Who directed KPop Demon Hunters?

KPop Demon Hunters was directed by Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans for Sony Pictures Animation, distributed by Netflix. Kang, born in Seoul and raised in Toronto, first pitched the concept in 2018 and drew heavily from Korean mythology and demonology for the film's villains and lore.

Who voices the characters in KPop Demon Hunters?

The voice cast includes Arden Cho as Rumi (who won the Annie for Best Voice Acting), Ahn Hyo-seop as Jinu, Lee Byung-hun as the demon ruler Gwi-Ma, Daniel Dae Kim, Ken Jeong, Yunjin Kim, May Hong, and Ji-young Yoo. The cast represents multiple generations of Korean talent in Hollywood.

Is KPop Demon Hunters on Netflix?

Yes. KPop Demon Hunters is Netflix's most-watched original title of all time with over 500 million views. The film received a limited theatrical run including a sing-along version, becoming the first Netflix film to top the U.S. box office. It was produced by Sony Pictures Animation with a budget of over $100 million.