Where was KPop Demon Hunters (2025) filmed?

The members of Huntrix were inspired by various K-pop girl groups, including 2NE1, Blackpink, Itzy and Twice (clockwise).

The name Huntrix portmanteaus hunter with the Latin feminine agent noun suffix -trix, to evoke the idea of women warriors. The three members of Huntrix were modeled after K-pop girl groups like Itzy, Blackpink, Twice, and 2NE1. The fashion and makeup of the characters took inspiration from Givenchy, Jean Paul Gaultier, and Alexander McQueen, with a focus on "infusing Korean traditional elements with haute couture". The character of Rumi was created in 2016 by Kang and her husband, Radford Sechrist, for Sechrist's comic Plastic Walrus; Kang repurposed it for KPop Demon Hunters. The character of Mira was inspired by Korean model Ahn So Yeon (professionally known as Ellis Ahn). The Saja Boys were inspired by Korean boy bands such as Tomorrow X Together, BTS, Stray Kids, Ateez, BigBang, and Monsta X. Korean actor and singer Cha Eun-woo was a key influence for Jinu, the group's leader; additionally, Kai of the Korean boy band Exo served as a reference for Jinu's facial expressions. The names of the members of the Saja Boys, with the exception of Jinu, reflect K-pop archetypes. The term Saja also alludes to the jeoseung saja (Korean: 저승사자; Hanja: 저승使者), a figure in Korean folklore comparable to the Grim Reaper, and to the Korean word for lion, saja (사자; 獅子); the Saja Boys' logo uses a lion head and the band's fandom is called "the Pride".

Baek Byung-yeul of The Korea Times said the styling of both groups connects to "the past and the present of Korea": the members of Huntrix "wear norigae pendants integrated into modern K-pop fashion, while Saja Boys perform in black hanbok and traditional horsehair hats for their song 'Your Idol,' evoking the image of the jeoseung saja". Huntrix members wield traditional Korean weapons. Max Kim of the Los Angeles Times noted the nods to Korean artists "who are seen today as the progenitors of contemporary K-pop" such as the Jeogori Sisters, The Kim Sisters and S.E.S. Kang described the visual journey in the character design such as the Saja Boys starting in a "bubble gum pop, very saccharine, super sweet look" and shifting darker until they fully take on the appearance of the jeoseung saja. Appelhans said Huntrix's costumes when performing "Golden" symbolize "their kind of MacGuffin of a dream", aspiring for perfection and irreproachability; the tearing away of Rumi's costume at the end of the film's second act represents the disruption of that dream. Appelhans said he wanted the workings of K-pop be reflected within the film and its plot.

Casting

Arden Cho, May Hong, and Ji-young Yoo voice Rumi, Mira, and Zoey

The castings for the characters' voice actors and singing voices were done at separate times, with the singers being cast earlier. Ejae was originally brought onto the production as a songwriter, before being offered the role of Rumi's singing voice; in an interview with Genius Korea, Ejae attributed her casting to "the directors [getting] used to hearing [her] voice in the demos". Arden Cho, the voice actress for Rumi, initially auditioned for the role of Celine, then for the role of Rumi at the encouragement of co-director Maggie Kang. Park Jin-young was initially envisioned for the role of Gwi-Ma, because the character was to have a more flamboyant and comedic personality. This was dropped as the character was developed into a more menacing and traditionally antagonistic figure, leading instead to the casting of Lee Byung-hun. In April 2025, Ji-young Yoo was announced as Zoey. The rest of the cast was announced later that month.

Animation

The film was animated by Sony Pictures Imageworks in its Vancouver and Montreal facilities with Josh Beveridge as animation director. Appelhans said its visual style was inspired by music videos, concert stage lighting, editorial photography, Korean dramas, and anime. Kang said that the team changed its idea after watching Sony's Spider-Verse films, celebrated for their hybrid 2D/3D animation. Instead of blending the two techniques, they focused on a 3D animation style inspired by the "aesthetics and facial expressions of anime". Beveridge similarly noted the inspiration of "2D aesthetics but with three-dimensional language", making the film entirely in 3D CGI, and that it should have a "very bold graphic look". Beveridge said the character art shifts to reflect the tone: glamorous for triumphant moments, angular and line-heavy for aggressive sequences, and "chibi-esque" for comedy. The first major scene to be animated was the initial encounter between Huntrix and the Saja Boys, which Beveridge said acted as a proof of concept for the character designs. Kang sought to authentically represent Korean identity through character animation, focusing on facial features like eye and mouth shapes. Although the characters speak English, the animators designed their mouth shapes to the Korean language. For action scenes, the filmmakers used glitter effects inspired by the South Korean film The Villainess (2017), with Beveridge said this gave the scenes a feeling of dance-fighting: "You can get pretty violent if you put a lot of glitter on." Precise detail was added to represent Korean cultural details such as the Namsan Tower, Korean cuisine, the Naksan Wall, sign swords, and traditional tiger motifs.

Salon's Hanh Nguyen wrote that the animation of Jinu's pet tiger and magpie—which the creative team call Derpy and Sussie respectively—are based on minhwa, a type of Korean folk art that was popular during the Joseon period. Images of tigers, magpies, and pine trees are the focus of the Hojak-do genre of minhwa; the portrayal of these animals took cues from the satirical, anti-authority character that Hojak-do took on during the 17th century. Park Han-sol of The Korea Times wrote that minhwa was often "whimsical" with "mischievous details" and depictions of tiger and magpie delivered "a playful jab at those in power". She said the gag of the magpie stealing the tiger's hat "feels like an affectionate nod to the long-running visual joke". Sechrist was also a story artist and designed the tiger; he said that the blue color of the tiger's fur may have stemmed from with production designer Helen Mingjue Chen wanting to make the character feel more magical. Kang commented that Derpy was initially conceived without a clear role, but they did not want him to be just a sidekick. The team was inspired by a painting by Chen of a tiger statue turning into a real tiger next to an open shirt Jinu, which led to the idea of Derpy being Jinu's pet, eventually becoming a means for Rumi and Jinu to exchange messages and communicate, "and then the bird tagged along". Kang said the animals "live between these two worlds", with their nature left mysterious.

Choreography

The dance choreography was worked on by Jam Republic's Jo Na-In, the Black Label's Leejung Lee, and the group K-Tigers. Jo, a South Korean dancer and choreographer, created the sequences for "Golden" and "Takedown". The choreography for "How It's Done" was done by Lee, and the choreography for "Your Idol" was done by K-Tigers' Ha Seong-jin; choreography for the "Soda Pop" sequence was worked on by Lee and Ha. In an interview, Jo stated that she was inspired by "Golden" itself when developing the choreography for the song indicating that "I focused on the storytelling that needed to be conveyed through the animation. I tried to concentrate more on expressing the lyrics and emotions." On the animation aspect, Jo explained that she "made the movements bigger and more expansive" as well as keeping "close attention to details like facial expressions and fingertips to ensure they come across well onscreen".

Fight scene choreography was contributed to by K-Tigers, including Taemin—who acted as the martial arts director—and Ha Seong-jin. When interviewed, Ha explained that he "decided to weave taekwondo elements into [the Saja Boys'] choreography. This way, it could showcase taekwondo not just as sport, but also as something aesthetically powerful." Josh Beveridge when discussing the fight choreography, noted the deliberate dance-fighting feel to the action, explaining that "[s]ome of those fight choreographers had done some idol training, and in between the moves, they'd make these cute little adjustments. That is where the personality is."