Sony Didn't Believe in the Power of Huntr/x, Now They Are Missing Out.

"Kpop Demon Hunters" is a 2025 Film released on Netflix. This photo portrays the three main characters: Rumi, Mira, and Zoey. Photo Credit: Netflix Tudum.

Since the beginning of summer, it has been increasingly difficult to avoid “Golden” or “Soda Pop” on the radio. As well, it’s been impossible to ignore the dances and visuals of Huntr/x and Saja Boys on your “For You Page”. The movie “Kpop Demon Hunters” is quickly becoming a global hit and the sad part about it is that no one was prepared for it, not even Sony. No one significantly believed in a positive outcome for this movie. Despite it all, children and adults alike are sealing the “Honmoon” every day and the movie is only gaining more attraction. However, since Sony didn’t invest much into the movie compared to other projects, how much did they really miss out on?

For those who are not aware, “Kpop Demon Hunters” is a Netflix film that was released in August of this year. The story follows the main lead Rumi and her music group, “Huntr/x”, who have to defeat the evil demons in the enemy band, “Saja Boys”. From reviews of others, the movie is perceived to be “addictive” and enjoyable. Beyond the movie, the soundtrack of “Kpop Demon Hunters” is everywhere, especially songs such as “Golden”, “Takedown”, and “Soda Pop”. You can’t avoid them on the radio or on social media. For instance, “Golden” has over 1.3 million posts on Tiktok using the sound, and the movie has only been out for over two months. That’s huge numbers! 

It’s safe to determine that this movie was a hit, but how did Sony really fumble a successive movie like this one? What was the financial impact of Huntr/x?

One of the major ways that I believe the producers of this film missed a major profit opportunity is barely making any merchandise for this movie. Especially with the holidays coming around, I have yet to see many toys or apparel in stores. I really noticed this when I saw parents on social media calling other parents on how to make costumes from the movie since there is a lack of them in major Halloween stores. Typically, studios work to release costumes of the main characters in their movie to capitalize off the popularity around Halloween. This is not the case for “Kpop Demon Hunters”; there are no costumes released for this movie. It’s really hard to blame this lack of merchandise on how recent the movie was released since costumes inspired by the Disney movie “Zombies 4”, which was released around a similar time, and the upcoming movie “Wicked: For Good” are available in major retail stores. The studio behind “Kpop Demon Hunters” could have made a costume design in time for this Halloween. However, it must be noted that these movies are produced by major companies like Disney and Universal Pictures, who probably have easier access to merchandise production.

Yet, one would assume by now, two months of increasing popularity around the movie, that the producers behind the hit “Kpop Demon Hunters” would release some kind of toys or apparel for Black Friday or even Christmas shopping. Still, looking at major retail websites such as Target and Amazon, such products don’t exist yet. The only official toy available today is some “Funko Pops” of some characters like Rumi and Jinu. Only now is “Mattel”, a major toy producer, announcing a collaboration with the movie. Even then, these dolls won’t be released till early next year. This passes the popular shopping season and prime time for toy sales. 

Realistically, Netflix and Sony Pictures really missed out on earning more profit from the success of this movie by not releasing official toys and apparel. It’s hard to say that this is because of lack of connections in merchandise production since both Netflix and Sony Pictures have connections to producers who could produce merchandise for this movie. Although, both companies could have not seen this movie to be popular enough before the release to invest their time into production of merchandise.

Another major way that the producers of “Kpop Demon Hunters” missed profit is by not releasing the official movie in theaters sooner. Sony Pictures sold the rights to the movie to Netflix, which only allowed the movie to be published on the streaming service. This is how it was since before the rise of popularity in the film and during the rise. Although the official movie (version on streaming services) was never released in theaters, the Sing-Along version was released in theaters for a short-run. On August 23rd and 24th, this version of the film was released. This weekend had over 1000+ screenings of the movie sold out across the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK. According to IMDbPro, the Sing-Along version of “Kpop Demon Hunters” made $18 million worldwide in theaters over the two screening dates. 

The amount of money that the movie made in two days alone proves that there was potential for the film to make hundreds of millions if it had a full-length screening in theaters across the world. $18 million made from a Sing-Along alone proves that there could be some benefit to release the original to theaters since the sing-along is in high demand. 

If you’re one of the fans who would like to see “Kpop Demon Hunters” in theaters, you’re in luck. The Sing-Along version will be released in theaters for “Halloweekend”. According to CNET, screenings of this version will be released on October 31st, November 1st, and November 2nd. Besides a fun activity to do after Halloween, the rerelease of a Sing-Along version shows that this movie is in high demand for theaters. Fans were literally demanding that the movie be put back into theaters just because so many loved it so much. This proves that having the official screening of “Kpop Demon Hunters” could be profitable to producers because if they had to release a Sing-Along version of the film in theaters again due to the high demand for it, it would make sense the original version would be in high demand as well. With high demand, there is potential for high revenue and profits. 

In the end, I really feel like Sony Pictures and Netflix missed out on so much profit with this movie. Although it was not originally projected to be a hit, the movie still had so much potential afterwards to earn revenue from it. With the holidays coming up, toys need to be released soon so that they can earn profit from holiday shoppers and sales on Black Friday. Additionally, screening the original version of “Kpop Demon Hunters” soon will generate more revenue. Especially if they screen the movie during the time most schools are out for the holidays, the producers of the movie can gain some benefit for releasing it into theaters. 

There is still time for this movie to earn a profit, I just believe that there was so much wasted potential beforehand. 

Sources: 

“Kpop Demon Hunters.” Box Office Mojo, IMDbPro, www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl2363392001/. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025. 

Isenburg, Meara. “‘kpop Demon Hunters’ Is Heading to Theaters Again. Here’s How to Get Tickets.” CNET, 16 Oct. 2025, www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/kpop-demon-hunters-is-heading-to-theaters-again-heres-how-to-get-tickets/. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.

I do not own the rights to the photo used, all credits go to "Tudum by Netflix".

Hatchett, Keisha. “Kpop Demon Hunters Reaches a Golden Milestone: Most Popular Netflix Film Ever.” Netflix Tudum, 26 Aug. 2025, www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/kpop-demon-hunters-most-popular-netflix-film. Accessed 03 Nov. 2025.