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Brendan Morrow, USA TODAYDecember 11, 2025 at 7:32 AM

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NEW YORK — When it comes to awards season, "KPop Demon Hunters" keeps going up, up, up.

Ejae, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami, the singing voices of Huntr/X in the wildly popular Netflix musical "KPop Demon Hunters," stepped out on Wednesday, Dec. 10, in New York City for Time magazine's "A Year in Time" event, where the film was honored as the breakthrough of the year.

The evening, which also featured an appearance by entertainer of the year Leonardo DiCaprio, kicked off with the trio singing the movie's Grammy-nominated track "Golden," and it ended with Kevin Woo, the singing voice of Mystery Saja, performing another hit song from the film, "Soda Pop."

Speaking to USA TODAY on the red carpet, Ejae says the central messages "not to think black and white," and that "you have to love all colors of yourself," are the reason "KPop Demon Hunters" has had such an impact. "I think that's what resonated with a lot of people, and also the power of leaning on your loved ones," she says.

Rei Ami, EJAE and Audrey Nuna attend Time Magazine's "A Year In TIME" event on Dec. 10, 2025, in New York City.

Ami also highlighted the way the movie authentically portrays its lead Asian characters.

"The way Asian women are portrayed, it's not just one-dimensional," she says.

"You see the silliness, the seriousness, but also, these girls have such a healthy relationship with food. They love to carbo load before a show, and we do, too! So I think just portraying Asian women in a very refreshing, new and accurate light, that's something not just the Asian community needed, but the entire world."

'KPop Demon Hunters' star Ahn Hyo-Seop on film's smash success, if Jinu could return

"KPop Demon Hunters" centers on a trio of K-pop singers who moonlight as demon hunters – but little do their fans know that one of them is secretly half-demon herself. In the film, the singers are depicted enthusiastically chowing down on ramen and other delicious looking food before going out on stage to perform.

Since its June streaming release, "KPop Demon Hunters" has become Netflix's biggest movie in history, and a singalong theatrical release became the streamer's first-ever film to be No. 1 at the box office in August.

The biggest hit song from the soundtrack, "Golden," is nominated for song of the year at the 2026 Grammys, and before the Oscar nominations are even announced, it's the presumed frontrunner to win the Academy Award for best original song. The Time event continued a big week for "KPop Demon Hunters," which on Dec. 8 picked up three nominations at the Golden Globe Awards, including best animated film and best original song for "Golden."

Audrey Nuna, Amanda Nguyen, EJAE, Ji-young Yoo and Rei Ami attend Time Magazine's "A Year In TIME" event on Dec. 10, 2025, in New York City.

On the red carpet, Ji-young Yoo, the voice of Huntr/X singer Zoey, told USA TODAY the Time magazine honor was a surreal highlight amid a whirlwind past few months.

"Seeing the animated characters on the cover of Time magazine is not something I ever expected to happen in my career," she says, while noting she has been constantly experiencing moments like these lately.

"It feels like once a day, I get new news where I'm like, 'Oh, I've got to lie down,'" she says.

Chris Appelhans, the co-director of "KPop Demon Hunters," told USA TODAY he was "really impressed" by the way fans picked up on every theme and detail he and the rest of the team packed into the film. "Audiences are so smart," he says. "If you can tell an interesting story that they relate to, they'll just get in there and dig up every detail."

'KPop Demon Hunters' singers deliver surprise 'SNL' performance of 'Golden'

But producer Michelle Wong reflected that she was initially "on the fence on if the world would actually embrace" a movie so rooted in Korean culture.

Kevin Woo and Danny Chung attend Time Magazine's "A Year In TIME" event on Dec. 10, 2025, in New York City.

Wong notes it's been particularly satisfying to see the way fans have embraced "all the crazy words" that were invented for the film, including Honmoon, which describes a barrier that protects the world from demons.

"We talked about it a lot," she says. "Are people going to understand what this means? Some people on our team can't even pronounce it. But we stuck with it."

She added, "I'm hoping it gets into Webster's Dictionary!"

1 / 5Iconic 'KPop Demon Hunters' duo Derpy and Sussie get balloons in Macy's paradeMacy’s unveiled new inflatable balloons for the 2026 Thanksgiving Day Parade including Derpy and Sussie from the year’s hit film “KPop Demon Hunters”.

At a time when hit movies not based on any pre-existing intellectual property are few and far between, Wong also said the success of "KPop Demon Hunters" should help open the door to more "new and interesting, original" stories in Hollywood. "We hope that the rest of the community is given the opportunity to do the same."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'KPop Demon Hunters' stars Huntr/x on movie's 'refreshing' story

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