KPop Demon Hunters fans go wild as HUNTR/X makes h...

KPop Demon Hunters fans go wild as HUNTR/X makes history with powerful live Oscars performance

KPOP Demon Hunters fans went through the roof with excitement after watching HUNTR/X’s history-making Oscars performance and win.

The trio of voices behind the band from the popular Netflix film – Ejae, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami – took the stage at the 98th annual Academy Awards on Sunday, moving audiences worldwide with tears of joy.

HUNTR/X took the stage at the 98th annual Academy Awards on Sunday

The trio – Ejae, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami – performed their hit track, Golden, from KPop Demon Hunters Credit: ABC
They performed their iconic track, Golden, celebrating the folklore and cultural inspiration brought from the 2025 animated film.

Shortly after hitting the stage, KPop Demon Hunters, which became Netflix’s most-watched film ever, won the award for Best Original Song for Golden, after dominating awards season.

It’s the first Academy Award for a K-pop artist in the history of the genre.

HUNTR/X, who nabbed two awards – Best Song Written for Visual Media for the famed track and Best Original Song – at the Golden Globes in January, incorporated instrumentals and dance into their performance at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles.

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“Let’s go KPOP Demon Hunters!” one excited fan wrote on X.

“I love me some KPop demon hunters! Those girls were singing down in that movie lol,” said another.

“KPop Demon Hunters made HISTORY,” reacted a third.

“The only thing I care about at the Oscars is K Pop Demon Hunters. If it were up to me, I’d give them all the possible awards,” added a fourth.

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However, many were disappointed that their acceptance speech was abruptly cut short, as were many others throughout the night, despite them pleading for more time.

“Absolutely disrespectful of the #oscars for cutting off kpop demon hunters in their acceptance speech. They were given less time than every other winner and the Oscar’s owes them an apology,” one fan raged.

“I don’t like how they cut off the Kpop Demon Hunters Cast. That was nasty #Oscars,” someone else complained.

“Congrats to Michael B Jordan, but why did he get 3x the amount of time for his speech than the KPop Demon Hunters crew?” said another, referencing Sinners star Michael B. Jordan’s Best Actor win afterwards.

HUNTR/X is the first all-Asian musical act to take the Oscars stage, following Blackpink K-pop band member Lisa, who was the first K-pop artist to perform at the show last year.

In August 2025, Netflix revealed that KPop Demon Hunters was the platform’s most popular movie of all time, overtaking the previous record-holder, Red Notice, starring Dwayne Johnson, Ryan Reynolds, and Gal Gadot.

Who won on Hollywood’s biggest night?

One Battle After Another ran away with the night with six Oscars, while Sinners, which was nominated for a record-breaking 16 awards, came away with four. See the full winners list below:

Best Picture: One Battle After Another

Best Actress: Jessie Buckley, Hamnet

Best Actor: Michael B. Jordan, Sinners

Supporting Actress: Amy Madigan, Weapons

Supporting Actor: Sean Penn, One Battle After Another

Directing: One Battle After Another, Paul Thomas Anderson

Adapted Screenplay: One Battle After Another, Paul Thomas Anderson

Original Screenplay: Sinners, Ryan Coogler

Documentary Feature: Mr. Nobody Against Putin

Documentary Short: All the Empty Rooms

Animated Feature: KPop Demon Hunters

Animated Short: The Girl Who Cried Pearls

Cinematography: Sinners, Autumn Durald Arkapaw

Costume Design: Frankenstein, Kate Hawley

Film Editing: One Battle After Another, Andy Jurgensen

International Feature: Sentimental Value – Norway

Life Action Short: 

The Singers (TIED)

Two People Exchanging Saliva (TIED)

Makeup and Hairstyling: Frankenstein, Mike Hill, Jordan Samuel and Cliona Furey

Original Score: Sinners, Ludwig Goransson

Original Song: Golden, KPop Demon Hunters

Production Design: Frankenstein, Tamara Deverell and Shane Vieau

Sound: F1, Gareth John, Al Nelson, Gwendolyn Yates Whittle, Gary A. Rizzo and Juan Peralta

Visual Effects: Avatar: Fire and Ash, Joe Letteri, Richard Baneham, Eric Saindon and Daniel Barrett

Casting: One Battle After Another, Cassandra Kulukundis

“KPop Demon Hunters has gone up, up, up, and it’s their Golden moment,” the streaming service said in a statement.

“The animated musical officially became Netflix’s most popular film of all time on the Most Popular English Films list with 236 million total views.“