10 to stream while you wait for a sequel
Netflix’s K-Pop Demon Hunters is an undeniable, infernal triumph. It’s consistently sitting among the platform’s top 10 films, its killer soundtrack debuted at number 2 on the Billboard 200, and it’s inspiring tons of fanfic (a critical measure of success for any new cartoon).
If you’ve somehow missed this pop culture phenomenon, K-Pop Demon Hunters tells the story of HUNTR/X, a girl group of modern demon slayers whose music protects humanity, sealing all demonkind behind a barrier called Honmoon. Their lead singer, Rumi, is secretly half demon, and she fears her identity will be exposed as she begins to lose her voice. Meanwhile, dark demon king, Gwi-Ma, forms a rival K-Pop boy band to harness fan energy and destroy the barrier. The film’s blend of comedic hyperbole, kick-ass action, genuinely great music, and big emotions (including an enemies-to-lovers arc) captivated global audiences.
If you’re reading this article, however, there’s a good chance you’ve already seen K-Pop Demon Hunters and you’re hungry for more. With no news of a sequel (for now), the Polygon crew put our heads together to suggest 10 other animated shows and movies full of demons, original music, and sometimes both to watch next.
10. Hazbin Hotel
Vivienne Medrano’s deeply bizarre animated series has more adult vibes than K-Pop Demon Hunters. It features comedic bloody violence, comedic (and not-so-comedic) kinky sex, and a lot of highly colorful profanity. (Think Harley Quinn, with much stranger animation and a more supernatural setting, which is to say, it takes place in Hell.) But if you like watching powerful demons wrestle with their self-worth, navigate relationships that define their lives and change them for the better, and sing upbeat, catchy songs about it all, this is the show for you. There’s even a plot point that parallels K-Pop Demon Hunters, with one character hiding an important part of her supernatural identity and angsting over it being revealed and changing her relationships with her loved ones.
At its darkest, Hazbin Hotel is a surprisingly grim show — in a good way. It’s boundary-pushing and transgressive. It’s wry and funny, but it comes with a real edge. The poppy, fun animation, which feels like Beetlejuice meets The Owl House, won’t prepare you for how gleefully dark this series gets. Catch up now, ahead of season 2 this October. —Tasha Robinson
Where to find it: Streaming on Prime Video. Or watch the independently produced original pilot episode free on YouTube.
9. Carole & Tuesday
From Cowboy Bebop creator Shinichirō Watanabe, Carole & Tuesday hasn’t managed to get its music on the Billboard chart like K-Pop Demon Hunters, but you shouldn’t miss out on the sweet tunes of its titular performers.Carole & Tuesday follows two young women living on colonized Mars. Carole is a street musician; while performing one day, she meets Tuesday, the runaway guitar-playing daughter of a politician. They join forces and work together diligently to find their place in a world where AI dominates music writing and production. If you laughed out loud at Zoey, Mira, and Rumi’s sillier antics, this 2019 musical-comedy anime is sure to hit the spot. And, as per usual, Watanabe makes music a major part of his story. —Aimee Hart
Where to find it: Streaming on Netflix.
8. Arcane
Arcane is based on League of Legends, but you don’t need to have played any of the battle royale video game to fall in love with the show’s clashing characters. Like K-Pop Demon Hunters, it has a killer soundtrack and features lots of very complicated relationships. The show explores the conflict between the wealthy, progress-obsessed city of Piltover and the oppressed people of Zaun through the eyes of a pair of sisters who wind up on opposite sides of the divide, and two brilliant inventors who blend magic and technology and then lose control of their world-changing work. Arcane’s two-season run is packed with gorgeous fight scenes emphasizing vibrant colors and big emotions. —Samantha Nelson
Where to find it: Streaming on Netflix.
7. Turning Red
If part of the appeal of K-Pop Demon Hunters for you was the boy-band antics, the SD comedy elements, and the depiction of musical fandom and obsession, then Turning Red is a must-watch. Pixar’s 2022 coming-of-age comedy feels like a major influence on K-Pop Demon Hunters’ humor, especially in the way that extremely tangible way the HUNTR/X crew (particularly Zoey) respond to Saja Boys’ music and the individual musicians. Turning Red protagonist Mei (Rosalie Chiang) is younger than the HUNTR/X team — she’s just turned 13 — but she’s going through her own big emotions, supernatural transformations, and war against the powerful magic that takes over the women of her family when they hit puberty. The movie’s action climax, set at a J-pop concert that goes spectacularly wrong, lines up neatly with K-Pop Demon Hunters’ sense of musical drama. —TR
Where to find it: Streaming on Disney Plus, available for digital purchase on Amazon and similar sites.
6. Nimona
Nimona is a Netflix original animation with a visual style similar to K-Pop Demon Hunters, as well as a similar punk attitude, and themes about characters dealing with friendship, betrayal, and powerful supernatural forces. Based on Nate Stevenson’s webcomic and graphic novel, Nimona follows Ballister Boldheart (Riz Ahmed), a disgraced knight in a high-tech medieval retro-future, who teams up with a rebellious, shape-shifting teen named Nimona (Chloë Grace Moretz) after being framed for murder. As they fight to clear his name, Ballister discovers that Nimona may be the exact monster he was raised to fear, forcing him to question everything he thought he knew. —Isaac Rouse
Where to find it: Streaming on Netflix.
5. Revolutionary Girl Utena
Revolutionary Girl Utena is an older anime from 1997, but if your mind was blown after watching K-Pop Demon Hunters’ combat scenes, you’ll absolutely be on board for both the poignant female relationships in Utena and its truly bananas battles. While it isn’t as flashy as K-Pop Demon Hunters, you haven’t truly lived until you watch a fight scene while “ALLEGORY, ALLEGORIER, ALLEGORIEST” is chanted in the background. The anime series follows Tenjou Utena, a teenage girl who enters a sword-duel tournament to help “win” the hand of shy girl, Himemiya Anthy, also known as the “Rose Bride.” It can get pretty dark, but it received worldwide critical acclaim for a reason. —AH
Where to find it: Available to purchase on YouTube.
4. Inuyasha
Much like K-Pop Demon Hunters, Inuyasha blends supernatural horror with fast-paced action and romantic tension, leaning into “will-they/won’t-they” and enemies-to-lovers tropes to tell a sweeping love story between two characters from opposite worlds. Although the series predates the term, Inuyasha is widely regarded as the blueprint for modern-day isekai anime. This shōnen action-adventure romantic comedy follows a modern-day high-school girl named Kagome who gets transported to feudal Japan where she meets the titular half-demon boy. Together, they embark on a quest to find the scattered shards of the Shikon Jewel, a powerful artifact that can grant wishes. —IR
Where to find it: Streaming on Hulu, Netflix, Prime Video, and Tubi
3. Raya and the Last Dragon
If you’re after something to watch that gives room and depth to female relationships in the same way K-Pop Demon Hunters does, you can’t go wrong with Raya and the Last Dragon. This 2021 fantasy-adventure film follows Raya (Kelly Marie Tran), a warrior princess who seeks out the last dragon in her world in order to save her father from the evil spirits known as the Druun. Along the way, Raya finds solace with a group of outcasts and comes to realize vengeance isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be. —AH
Where to find it: Streaming on Disney Plus, and available to purchase on Apple TV and Amazon Prime.
2. Scott Pilgrim Takes Off
The entire cast of Edgar Wright’s 2010 film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World reunited for this 2023 anime retelling of the video game-inspired romantic comedy (itself based on a graphic novel). But this is no mere animated remake. In a clever twist, instead of Scott battling his way through Ramona’s evil exes to earn her love, he vanishes after fighting his first challenger, leaving Ramona to try to puzzle out what happened. Like K-Pop Demon Hunters, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off spends a lot of time focused on concerts — Scott’s in an indie band, and his ex is a pop star. The miniseries is sweet and silly, with extremely over-the-top fights, but it builds to a strong message about falling in (and out) of love. —SN
Where to find it: Streaming on Netflix.
1. Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse
For the aesthetic comparisons alone, Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse is an easy layup answer for what to watch (or rewatch) after K-Pop Demon Hunters. This 2023 sequel to Into The Spider-Verse has Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) meeting his fellow Spider-Men across the multiverse — and getting a less-than-warm welcome. Both films are also about accepting yourself in spite of what others may label you, and each movie has a killer soundtrack that boast some of the best songs to come out of their respective release years. —IR
Where to find it: Streaming on Disney Plus, and available for purchase on Fandango at Home and Apple TV.