'K-Pop Demon Hunters' Defeats Disney and Pixar... 'Squid Game' Achieves Third Consecutive Victory

Critics Choice Awards: Best Animated Feature and Best Song
Maggie Kang: "A Love Letter to Korea"
'Squid Game' Wins Again with Season 3
The Strength of K-Content Breaking into the American Mainstream

Director Maggie Kang Holding the Trophy Photo by Reuters and Yonhap News

An animation infused with Korean color has toppled the stronghold of animation giants Disney and Pixar. The drama series 'Squid Game' lifted its third trophy, establishing an unrivaled 'dynasty' in the American mainstream market.

On January 4 (local time), Netflix's animated film 'K-Pop Demon Hunters' and the drama series 'Squid Game' swept the 31st Critics Choice Awards held in Santa Monica, California. With over 600 North American critics participating in the selection, this moment symbolically demonstrates that K-content has firmly established itself as a mainstream genre, moving beyond being a passing trend.

"K-Animation's Rebellion Surpasses Disney"...A Green Light for the Oscars

The biggest surprise and star of the awards ceremony was undoubtedly 'K-Pop Demon Hunters.' Directed by Korean-American Maggie Kang, the film won both Best Animated Feature and Best Song (for the soundtrack 'Golden'), taking home two trophies.

The significance is heightened by the fact that its competitors were blockbuster films from major studios that have long supported Hollywood, such as Disney's 'Zootopia 2' and Pixar's 'Elio.' Local critics favored a work rooted in Korean sentiment and K-pop over traditional powerhouses. As the Critics Choice Awards are often considered a precursor to the Academy Awards (Oscars), the chances of an Oscar win in March have greatly increased.

Netflix Animation 'K-Pop Demon Hunters' Still Cut

The acceptance speeches fully reflected the identity of the works. On stage, Director Maggie Kang shared her overwhelming emotions, saying, "The journey of this film began seven years ago as my personal love letter to Korean culture and as a message to everyone striving to reconcile the world's expectations with their true selves."

Composer and singer Lee Jae, who won Best Song, stated, "This song ('Golden') is an expression of hope, with the protagonist Rumi convincing herself that she can pursue her dreams. It is truly an honor to be able to give hope to so many people around the world."

'Squid Game' Continues Its Dominance...Park Chanwook's New Film Misses Out

In the television category, 'Squid Game' made history once again. With its third season, it won Best Foreign Language Series in the TV category, becoming the first series to win the Critics Choice Awards three times for the same title-following victories for Season 1 in 2022 and Season 2 last year. It demonstrated its enduring impact by outperforming competitors such as 'Acapulco' and 'Last Samurai Standing.'

Netflix 'Squid Game' Still Cut

Meanwhile, Director Park Chanwook's highly anticipated new film 'No Other Choice' fell short of winning in the film category. Although it was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Foreign Language Film, the trophies went to Paul Thomas Anderson's 'One Battle After Another' and the film 'Secret Agent,' respectively.

This year's highest honors in the film category-Best Picture and Best Director-were both awarded to 'One Battle After Another.' Guillermo del Toro's 'Frankenstein' swept four categories, including Best Supporting Actor. 'K-Pop Demon Hunters' will continue its challenge as a nominee in three categories at the Golden Globe Awards scheduled for January 11.