How KPop Demon Hunters made it to the cover of Time magazine

It's not often that animation makes it to the cover of one of the world's most famous new magazines, but then the success of KPop Demon Hunters has been far from usual.

Time has declared Netflix's most-streamed movie ever to be its 'breakthrough of the year', putting Rumi, Mira and Zoey on the front of a cover variation for its final edition of 2025. And if the composition looks familiar, that's because it's a wonderfully meta Easter egg that turns an in-movie prop into a self-fulfilling prophecy.

The Time magazine KPop Demon Hunters cover illustration is a vibrant 3D render of a composition that you might have spotted in the movie itself. It appears in a scene where we see Mira reading a fictional magazine called Outer with HUNTR/X on the cover.

The final paint in the movie was done by visual development artist Simon Baek. But the composition itself is based on earlier rough 2D concept sketch by Sony's environment art director Celine Dahyeu Kim, which she shares in the Instagram posts below.

For Time's cover, the 3D posing and rendering for Time were done by SPI, and the paintover and edits were by Mingjue Chen and Scott Watanabe.

Time's declaration of KPop Demon Hunters as its Breakthrough of the Year tops off a phenomenal 2024 for a movie that Sony and Netflix considered to be too niche to really do well. At a time when studios tend to play it safe by recycling familiar IPs, Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans' original movie notched up over 325 million views in its first three months and entered the top 10 in 93 countries.

Despite specific Korean cultural references and a lack of big names, the movie has resonated with viewers of different ages all over the world. We've seen some analysis of the possible reasons for KPop Demon Hunters' success, with some suggesting it did well by targeting an older audience while the likes of Disney and Pixar targeted recent original releases at younger children. This helped it pick up recommendations from influencers on social media.

The movie has proven that there's a huge appetite for animation among adults and older teens. We're now hoping for a strong year for animation in 2026.

The Time magazine 2025 Person of the Year edition can be preordered from Magazine Shop.

To learn more about the creative process behind the movie, check out the KPop Demon Hunters art book, which is available to read for free online. Also check out the KPop Demon Hunters merchandise available, which could make great gifts for fans over the festive season.