In KPop Demon Hunters, style isn’t just about grabbing the attention of red carpet photographers and adoring fans with cell phones — that happens for HUNTR/X members Rumi, Mira, and Zoey no matter where they show up. For the creative team behind the Oscar-nominated film, led by co-writer-directors Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans, the characters’ fashion was more than an aesthetic choice — it was treated as an essential part of their self-expression, a superpower that connects them to their identities, heritage, and fans.

The cast and creators of KPop Demon Hunters unite at the Critics Choice Awards. Any coincidence that they’re dressed in Gwi-Ma-coded colors? BACK ROW: Audrey Nuna, Rei Ami, EJAE, producer Michelle Wong, Chris Appelhans, Maggie Kang, Arden Cho, Ji-young Yoo; FRONT: Byung Hun Lee, May Hong, Mark Sonnenblick

PHOTO BY CHRISTOPHER POLK/GETTY IMAGES

Now, in real life, the filmmakers, creatives, and voice cast have been channeling the spirit of HUNTR/X in their own fashion choices. In the years of making KPop Demon Hunters, before it became a critically acclaimed worldwide smash, Kang had no idea she’d be hitting the awards circuit like the cultural icons she helped create. “I feel like this is a totally new thing that we’re thrown into, so I’m still trying to discover my style on the red carpet,” Kang tells Tudum. “So it’s interesting. I had to do that while making the film, too. This is my first movie that I’m directing and writing, and I was like, ‘What kind of director am I?’ Now I’m like, ‘What kind of fashion person am I?’”

“What kind of fashion person” is Maggie Kang? Well, here she is, shining like she’s born to be, at the Golden Globes.

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“Maggie said something I always really liked,” recalls Appelhans, “which is, ‘It’s okay to be badass and also love fashion.’ The girls embody that vibe. They can wear their pajama pants, kick people in the face, and also love everything that’s wonderful about fashion and that form of expression and glamour.”

To put it more simply, here’s a note Appelhans gave to the designers and animators: “Dude, high fashion, let’s go!”

Scroll on to see the KPop Demon Hunters team rocking heart-eye-inducing looks that would make Rumi, Mira, and Zoey proud.

Grammy Awards: Feb. 1

Audrey Nuna in Thom Browne, EJAE in Dior, and Rei Ami in Guvanch are works of art. “Golden” won the Grammy for Best Song Written for a Visual Medium.

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Rei Ami wears a Guvanch look inspired by mugunghwa, the national flower of Korea.

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Audrey Nuna in a Thom Browne look inspired by her family’s history

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Here stand titans of K-pop: THEBLACKLABEL artists IDO (NHD, Yuhan, and ZHUN), 24, Vince, Dominsuk, and Danny Chung cut handsome silhouettes on the Grammys red carpet.

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Golden Globes: Jan. 11

The 83rd Annual Golden Globe Awards was a shimmering night for the entire KPop Demon Hunters team, and every single one of the creatives, actors, and singers came ready for the occasion. The singing talent behind HUNTR/X — EJAE as Rumi, Audrey Nuna as Mira, and Rei Ami as Zoey — stunned in black while the film won gold for Best Animated Feature and Best Song for “Golden.” EJAE, also a songwriter and lyricist on the soundtrack, including on “Golden,” notes to Tudum, “It’s fun because I feel like weirdly — and the fans have noticed this — the characters’ style translates really well to me and the girls and how we’ve been dressing.”

Audrey Nuna, Rei Ami, and EJAE get into formation at the Golden Globe Awards. Animation director Josh Beveridge described to Tudum the philosophy of how the characters in the film should look together: “They don’t look coordinated, but they belong next to each other.”

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Astra Film Awards: Jan. 9

Arden Cho, EJAE, and May Hong show off a range of shades and patterns at the Astra Film Awards.

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Arden Cho (speaking voice of Rumi), May Hong (speaking voice of Mira), and EJAE all wore nuanced hues to the Astra Film Awards ceremony in Beverly Hills, which, intentionally or not, reflected the film’s precise approach to color. “The red is never a true red; it’s got a little bit of pink in it,” production designer Mingjue Helen Chen explains to Tudum about the movie’s color palette. “The green is not a true green; it’s got a little blue in it. And so they end up all being very tertiary colors.”

May Hong at the Astra Film Awards.

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EJAE at the Astra Film Awards.

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Critics Choice Awards: Jan. 4

The voice actors behind HUNTR/X — Arden Cho, May Hong, and Ji-young Yoo — are radiant at the Critics Choice Awards.

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The KPop Demon Hunters team nabbed two wins at the 31st Annual Critics Choice Awards. Cho holds the trophy for Best Animated Feature alongside Hong and Ji-young Yoo, the speaking voice of Zoey, who’s wearing magenta — a very significant color in the film. Yoo told Netflix of her irrepressibly bright character, “Zoey is the only Korean American in the group, and she’s trying to figure out what that means and where she belongs. Feeling a little bit on the outside of the world, she’s always providing ideas to make her seem like she is irreplaceable, which she is … She just doesn’t necessarily know it herself.” Here, Yoo looks like she has no doubt.

EJAE and Arden Cho in elegant gowns at the Critics Choice Awards, making their girl Rumi proud.

PHOTO BY JC OLIVERA/GETTY IMAGES

Kang has special fashion memories from that night that brought to mind HUNTR/X, who can be fierce one moment and down to earth the next. “One of my favorite moments so far in awards season was at the Critics Choice Awards,” says Kang. “There’s a photo of me in my dress but looking all tired that I would never post. But then I remember our table that day, where Audrey had the hula-hoop dress and couldn’t sit down. While she was trying to figure that out, EJAE had this …”

“My corset,” EJAE reminds her.

“Her corset, and it’s busted,” continues Kang, “and it was just these glamorous red carpet photos of us juxtaposed with us at the table eating our food. … It just felt so much like our movie and how women really are. So I loved that.”

Mark Sonnenblick, EJAE, Chris Appelhans, Maggie Kang, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami relax in couture at the team table.

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Rei Ami, EJAE, and Audrey Nuna in structured looks at the Critics Choice Awards.

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Audrey Nuna sticking to her circular theme from head to toe at the Critics Choice Awards

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Lee Byung-hun is classic and dashing at the Critics Choice Awards.

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Detail of Lee Byung-hun’s brooch at the Critics Choice Awards.

PHOTO BY CHRIS DELMAS/GETTY IMAGES

Academy Museum 5th Annual Gala: Oct. 18, 2025

Creative powerhouses Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans have criss-crossed the globe to represent their beloved film since its release. The nonstop promotional schedule hasn’t been easy, but there’s a secret to how they keep going and still manage to bring the spark and polish to every event: “You just count on the movie to energize you,” says Appelhans. “No matter how tired I am, when it comes to either talking about the movie or being around people who worked on it, you’re really proud and excited to explain what was so fun about it and why it meant something to you.”

Writers and co-directors Chris Appelhans and Maggie Kang in elegant, subtly complementary outfits at the Academy Museum 5th Annual Gala.

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Maggie Kang at the Academy Museum 5th Annual Gala.

PHOTO BY EMMA MCINTYRE/GETTY IMAGES

MTV Video Music Awards: Sept. 7, 2025

Audrey Nuna, EJAE, and Rei Ami make a statement at the MTV Video Music Awards.

PHOTO BY JEFF KRAVITZ/GETTY IMAGES

It’s MTV, where it would be risky not to pull a bold look, which HUNTR/X never shies away from. And, just like HUNTR/X, the ladies did not miss. “Audrey killed it at the freaking VMAs with her sleeping bag-influenced outfit,” raves EJAE of Nuna’s chic homage to Mira’s infamous Met Gala look. “It’s just been fun to get inspiration from the movie’s fashion, and trying to translate it into real life.”

Check back for more killer red carpet moments from KPop Demon Hunters throughout awards season. In the meantime, KPop Demon Hunters is streaming now, only on Netflix.