KPop Demon Hunters toys won't make it for Christmas

Given the time needed to make and ship the products, most toys inspired by the film will not be ready until early 2026

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Visitors at a KPop Demon Hunters themed zone at Everland Resort in South Korea in September. Toymakers Mattel and Hasbro have agreed to share the master licence in a rare arrangement that lets them both produce and sell the hit animated movie's toys within their specialities. PHOTO: AFP

(AFP)

For the tweens and adults who have collectively streamed Netflix’s surprise mega-hit KPop Demon Hunters hundreds of millions of times since its summer release, there is nothing they want to get their hands on more this holiday season than action figures, dolls and plushies based on the film’s world-saving female pop trio.

Good luck. Parents eager to stock their kids’ stockings with official merchandise can find little more than a card game, wooden ornaments, phone grips and apparel at select retailers or Netflix’s online store.

Given the time required to produce and ship many consumer products and a level of fandom few anticipated, most of the toys inspired by the film will not be ready until the first or second quarter of 2026 - almost a year after the animated musical first took the world by storm.

The delay is bad news for toymakers and retailers, who want to give kids their favourite Christmas presents and take advantage of the year-end shopping frenzy in the process. US shoppers alone are expected to spend more than US$250 billion (S$325.8 billion) online in November and December, up 5.3 per cent from 2024, according to Adobe.

Yet, Netflix says it is not worried about the short-term inconvenience. Consumer products are still just a tiny business for the streamer, which views toys and clothing more as marketing for its programming than as a revenue generator.