Organic Globalization
What does Huntrix, Labubus, and IShowSpeed have in common?
Three months after the animated movie K-pop Demon Hunters debuted on Netflix’s platform, chances are you might have heard songs from the titular band Huntrix or its rival group Saja Boys blasted through your brain on repeat when scrolling through social media or voluntarily watching the film for the umpteenth time.
It’s not just you feeling the Huntrix fad; everyone is obsessed with the film. Now Netflix’s most-watched movie, the movie’s theatrical debut as a limited sing-along event has gathered thousands of enthusiastic fans in theaters, and its reach went as far as the US Open when Novak Djokovic was spotted dancing to Soda Pop.
For critics, most of them come up with three reasons for the movie’s success. Firstly, the movie has an easy-to-follow premise: Three female K-pop stars also have a side gig of fighting demons, which gets trickier when such said demons decide to form a boy band to steal their fans’ souls. Secondly, the movie’s catchy tunes are ripe for social media remixes, dances, and sing-alongs. Thirdly, despite a slightly mediocre plot, the animation does an amazing job of attracting audiences to keep watching the film to the end.
Euny Hong, an American journalist who has written about Korean influence on global culture, explained her take on the movie’s success in the New York Times.
This conceit is a somewhat clever metaphor for the K-pop “fandustry” — a portmanteau for “fan” and “industry” — which is the real secret sauce behind K-pop’s enduring success. Fandustry takes the expression “We are nothing without our fans” to a literal level. Case in point: U.S.-based K-pop fans in 2023 spent 2.4 times as much money on band merch as did pop fans generally, according to a 2024 study by entertainment analytics firm Luminate.
And therein lies a big key to the success of “KPop Demon Hunters”: The film suggests that the future of the world isn’t A.I. or the demonic oligarchy or any one group. It’s the fans. It’s you and me. How is that not intoxicating?
In other words, the film mirrors where the cultural identities of young people around the world are evolving and converging into a mash-up of styles that doesn’t privilege one over the other, or assume there is a center anywhere. Which is in no way to say that all humans of every race or ethnicity are getting along great. What it does mean, though, is that the whites have finally been decentered? And not by the invasion of Koreans or indeed of any other group, but by fandom.
Given the movie’s resonance with global audiences, it underlines a particular part of globalization and multiculturalism that many tend to overlook.
By the 2020s, the term “globalization” had been given a pretty bad name. Juxtaposing images of abandoned factories and towns compared to hyperactive warehouses in developing countries comes to mind, as well as the corresponding outrage by populists and nativists that use the term to rile up support. And don’t get me started on multiculturalism, as any talk of it on social media leads to a rabbit hole of racism and xenophobia.
However, an interconnected world has proven to be beneficial for bringing people together through the influence of soft power. If you are not familiar with the term, soft power is a term to describe how a country’s ability to achieve its foreign policy goals can be rooted in culture, political values, and foreign policies instead of threats and coercion.
South Korea and K-pop are a great example of soft power. Even if you are not a close follower of BTS or Blackpink, there is a very good chance you have heard at least one of their tunes. K-pop’s cultural appeal to listeners around the world creates mutual understanding regardless of background, not to mention the great PR boost for the Korean government.
Most notably, soft power’s appeal only takes effect if it’s organic, not manufactured. Take K-pop Demon Hunters. Netflix barely promoted the film from the start. Aside from a couple of trailers, the movie mostly blew up thanks to people spreading the word to friends and family, up to a level when even the movie’s creators and cast professed they had not foreseen the success of the film.
In the utmost demonstration of organic soft power, Maggie Kang, the movie’s creator, was joined by members of the girl group TWICE (Who boosted the film’s credibility) and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung for a TV talk show. The president’s office said in a press release that the talk "was arranged to reflect the global status of K-pop, the scalability of global content and its new possibilities, and share visions and ideas for K-pop's next stage. We plan to draw on the opinions and insights expressed during the program to help shape future policy directions."
As Hong put it in the Times article, the movie illustrates a globalism that many prefer.
Sure, multiculturalism and globalization have been around for a long time. But it was typically depicted in relationship to a “normal” that it deviated from. One way the culture responded to a world whose references were not only American or European was by being ironic, by pointing out the incongruities and laughing at them. That enjoyment was wholly dependent on othering: Some people, the right people, were the arbiters of culture, and others — the outsiders — were funny because they were not. It played on the audience’s firm prejudices that certain things were simply ridiculous. It meant that some people were in on the joke, and others are not. That gave us Apu on “The Simpsons.” To give one recent example, one of the running gags in the aughts-2010s hit “Community” was that an Asian American guy (played by Ken Jeong) was teaching Spanish. Get it? An Asian teaching Spanish! And he’s called Señor Chang! Sorry, where is the joke?
In a world that has paradoxically become more connected and isolated, people crave authenticity. As I have written before, the appeal of US President Donald Trump and New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani gained appeal by flexing their organic authenticity. But aside from politics, it is notable that the cultural shifts are moving in that direction as well.
One notable case is China. Before 2025, international views towards the Middle Kingdom are mostly negative, thanks to international coverage of alleged human rights abuses and the ruling party’s authoritarian streak. However, this year has seen a slight increase in perceptions of Beijing, including among Western countries.
Part of the shifting opinions is thanks to Donald Trump’s erratic policy-making, but that doesn’t portray the entire picture. Over the past few months, China has been flexing its soft power muscles, and not in the usual platforms of cute pandas or cool kungfu moves.
As you may remember, DeepSeek’s debut in January attracted much attention from the international media and those who are AI curious. Meanwhile, despite the proclaimed international popularity of the animated film Ne Zha 2, its actual dent on foreign audiences can be underwhelming.
The most notable soft power wins for Beijing this year come from two unexpected sources: The Ohio-born American streamer Darren Jason Watkins Jr. and a bunch of zoomorphic elves with exaggerated expressions.
Even if you aren’t a buyer or proud owner of Labubus, you probably have heard of the Chinese-created dolls sold by Popmart that come in blind boxes (Which means you don’t know what is contained within the packaging, and is somehow also the appeal). Aside from all the social media hype, you might have glanced at headlines of long lines at Popmart shops, proud celebrity Labubu owners, and real-world fraud cases surrounding the toys.
Meanwhile, the high-profile visit of IShowSpeed to different Chinese cities like Chongqing and Hong Kong has attracted millions of viewers to a different side of China that many have not experienced before. As SCMP noted, the streamer’s visit has made him an unexpected ambassador to China.
Analysts said that influencers like Watkins could inspire more foreigners to visit the country and called on Beijing to foster similar activities by making entry easier and being more open and inclusive.
At multiple points in his travels, Watkins commented on the difference between his expectations and what China was really like. His live broadcasts appeared to resonate with audiences, giving them a direct and engaging look at the country.
He was seen meeting excited fans and experiencing some of China’s hi-tech advances – riding a train through a tunnel in Beijing without losing internet connection, and trying on a pair of glasses that also gave translations in real time, as well as the latest in EVs.
With all of Beijing’s recent strides in soft power flexes, the influence of organic globalization cannot be missed. If you are familiar with Chinese politics, chances are you have noticed its highly choreographed and scripted nature. For recent examples, see the recent V-Day military parade. Such promotional efforts are great at towing the party line while making an impression, but for foreign audiences, many are likely to see through the advocational gimmicks.
With the influence of IShowSpeed and Labubus, China is seeing a new front opening up in its effort to win hearts and minds. The newfound success in Chinese soft power comes from organic sources, free from explicit government support and advocacy.
Countries and governments are getting a rebrand through their successful cultural exports and interconnected understanding. That is great for self-image, but at the same time, its independent and organic nature could pose a risk to the official line, especially for countries that care a lot about those narratives.