KPop Demon Hunters box office

Photo Credit: Netflix

Netflix’s hit musical “Kpop Demon Hunters” is beating out other films at the box office in its theatrical debut—a rare move for a made-for-TV film.

Netflix might have its first #1 box-office hit in the company’s nearly two-decade history—and it’s all thanks to the popularity of “Kpop Demon Hunters.” On Sunday, estimates found the film led all others over the weekend with at least $18 million in ticket sales.

After its summer of domination as one of the most popular Netflix releases ever, the streaming giant released the film into 1,750 theaters for a sing-along experience on Saturday and Sunday. That’s more than double the number of theaters that Netflix tapped to show “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” in 2022. Roughly 1,150 of the showings over the weekend were sold out.

It’s a unique win for Netflix for two reasons, least of which is the fact that the company has never prioritized theatrical releases. Moreover, the film isn’t even new; it debuted on Netflix around two months ago. But it has become the second-most watched film of all time on the platform, while three of its original songs—”Golden,” “Your Idol,” and “Soda Pop”—still sit in the Top 10 of Billboard’s Hot 100 chart.

“For 48 hours, this made-for-television film is playing to sold-out audiences who are singing, dancing, dressing up, and losing themselves in the fun. That’s pop entertainment at its best,” said analyst David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research. “There is no CinemaScore, but audiences, particularly kids, love this movie. That’s why it’s here.”

Notably, the release took place during one of the slowest weekends of the year for theatrical releases as summer winds down and families prepare for the new school year. And films playing over the weekend overall didn’t bring in spectacular revenue in terms of summer releases. But it’s that much more of a win for Netflix that its hit musical brought so many moviegoers out during a traditionally slow film weekend.