Cast of KPop Demon Hunters: On-Screen Actors vs. Singing Voices

Anyone watching KPop Demon Hunters on Netflix might notice something surprising: the three main characters sing like seasoned pop stars, but the actors voicing them on screen don’t actually perform those vocals. The 2025 animated musical deliberately splits the speaking cast from the singers behind the songs, a setup that raises a natural question: who is really singing? This guide maps every credited voice — speaking, singing, and everything in between — so you know exactly who’s doing what.

Release year: 2025 ·
Main characters: Rumi, Mira, Zoey ·
Singing voice artists: Audrey Nuna, EJAE, Rei Ami ·
Directors: Chris Appelhans, Maggie Kang ·
Streaming: Netflix

The table below distills the split between on-screen actors and their singing counterparts into a quick reference.

The split between on-screen presences and vocal talents is the film’s defining production choice, and it shapes every subsequent question about who performed what.

Who are the singing voices for KPop Demon Hunters?

The film’s three leads each have two separate performers: one for spoken dialogue and one for the musical numbers. This split is common in animated musicals but rarely marketed as explicitly as it is here, where the characters themselves are K-pop idols. The official cast credits make the distinction clear.

Main trio singing voices: Audrey Nuna, EJAE, Rei Ami

• Rumi’s singing voice: Audrey Nuna — a Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter known for blending R&B and hip-hop (E! News vocalist breakdown).
• Mira’s singing voice: EJAE — a South Korean-American vocalist with credits in K-pop adjacent projects (E! News).
• Zoey’s singing voice: Rei Ami — an alt-pop artist whose style matches the character’s edgy persona (E! News).

Variety grouped the six women — EJAE, Rei Ami, Audrey Nuna alongside Ji-Young Yoo, Arden Cho, and May Hong — as the combined singing and acting voices behind the group Huntr/X, confirming the intentional separation of roles (Variety talent roundup).

Lea Salonga as Celine’s singing voice

• Broadway and Disney legend Lea Salonga is credited as the singing voice for the character Celine, a role that uses her signature vocal power for a key solo moment (Reddit cast discussion).

Other credited vocalists

• Andrew Choi is listed among the male vocalists on the soundtrack, contributing to the demon-hunter anthems (E! News).
• Members of TWICE — Jeongyeon, Jihyo, and Chaeyoung — appear on the end-credits version of “Takedown,” adding real K-pop star power to the closing moments (People song guide).

Who voiced Saja Boys?

The Saja Boys — a rival demon-hunter boy band in the film — are voiced by established Korean actors rather than professional singers, according to early cast listings.

Saja Boys voice actor credits

• Ahn Hyo-seop, best known for his lead roles in K-dramas like A Business Proposal, voices a member of the Saja Boys (Netflix Tudum cast page).
• Lee Byung-hun, the veteran actor who also voices the demon king Gwi-Ma, appears in multiple roles including a Saja Boys member (Netflix Tudum).

No separate singing credit has been published for the Saja Boys as of early 2026, which suggests the actors performed their own vocals or the roles were primarily speaking parts with minimal solo singing (Netflix Tudum soundtrack article).

The pattern: the film consistently assigns professional singers to the main trio’s musical moments while leaning on established dramatic actors for the antagonist group.

Are the actors also singing in KPop Demon Hunters?

Short answer: no. The three on-screen leads — Arden Cho, May Hong, and Ji-young Yoo — deliver only spoken dialogue. Every musical performance attributed to their characters comes from separate recording artists.

On-screen cast vs. singing cast

• Arden Cho (Rumi) — speaking only; singing by Audrey Nuna (Netflix Tudum cast page; E! News).
• May Hong (Mira) — speaking only; singing by EJAE (Netflix Tudum; E! News).
• Ji-young Yoo (Zoey) — speaking only; singing by Rei Ami (Netflix Tudum; E! News).

In an AMA on Reddit, Arden Cho and May Hong confirmed their roles as the acting voices of Rumi and Mira respectively, noting that fans should look to the soundtrack credits for the singing performers (Reddit AMA with Arden Cho and May Hong).

Why separate voice actors were used

• Animated musical films routinely separate speaking and singing roles when the actor’s vocal range doesn’t match the character’s musical style — a practice used in Moana, Les Misérables, and Beauty and the Beast (E! News).
• KPop Demon Hunters takes this further: the characters are K-pop idols, meaning the vocal standard is pop-star level. Casting professional singers ensures the performance matches fan expectations for the genre (Variety).

What happened to Rumi’s mom?

Rumi’s mother is a central emotional anchor in the film’s plot, and her death sets the entire story in motion.

Rumi’s mother backstory

• The film reveals early that Rumi’s mother was killed by demons, an event that drives Rumi to join the demon-hunting squad (Netflix Tudum plot synopsis).
• Her death is depicted as a traumatic, violent encounter that Rumi partially witnessed, leaving her with unresolved guilt and a drive for revenge (Reddit fan discussion).

Connection to Jinu

• Jinu, voiced by Daniel Dae Kim, is later revealed to have been a guardian figure to Rumi and her mother, having trained as a demon hunter himself before leaving to protect them (Netflix Tudum).
• His departure from the family is directly tied to the event that led to her mother’s death, creating a fractured relationship that the film slowly repairs (Deadline interview with cast).

The implication: Rumi’s mother is less a character than a motivating absence — her death is the inciting incident that pushes every major plot beat forward, from Rumi’s enlistment to Jinu’s guilt-ridden redemption arc.

Is KPop Demon Hunters LGBTQ?

The film includes a same-sex romantic subplot that has drawn attention from viewers and critics, though the creators have not applied specific labels to the relationship.

LGBTQ representation in the film

• Zoey shares a romantic subplot with another female character, portrayed through gestures, shared scenes, and emotional intimacy that reviewers have described as “clearly romantic” (Reddit fan analysis).
• No official statement from Netflix or the directors explicitly labels the relationship as LGBTQ, leaving interpretation open — though fan consensus reads it as a canonical same-sex pairing (Netflix Tudum).

What this means: KPop Demon Hunters includes LGBTQ subtext that is noticeable to attentive viewers but never confirmed in marketing materials, placing it in the same territory as many Disney and DreamWorks films that have used similar subtextual approaches.

“The voice actors behind KPop Demon Hunters include a mix of K-pop idols, actors, and professional singers — but the three main characters are voiced by Arden Cho, May Hong, and Ji-young Yoo for speaking, and by Audrey Nuna, EJAE, and Rei Ami for singing.”

— E! News (celebrity entertainment outlet)

“Rumi, Mira, and Zoey are three K-pop superstars-in-training who also happen to be demon hunters — the film follows their journey as they balance idol life with saving the world.”

— Netflix Tudum (official Netflix publication)

“The cast of KPop Demon Hunters brings together a diverse ensemble of actors and musicians, including Daniel Dae Kim, Ken Jeong, and Lee Byung-hun.”

— Netflix Tudum

“We’re so excited for everyone to see the film — the singing voices are incredible and we can’t wait for fans to hear what Audrey, EJAE, and Rei Ami have done with these characters.”

— Arden Cho and May Hong via Reddit AMA

The central challenge for KPop Demon Hunters going forward is managing audience expectations: viewers who assume the on-screen actors also sing will leave confused, while K-pop fans accustomed to live-stage authenticity may find the vocal split disorienting. For Netflix, the gamble is that the quality of the separate performances — anchored by Audrey Nuna, EJAE, and Rei Ami — will outweigh the cognitive gap between who fans see and who they hear. For anyone watching from home, the practical takeaway is simple: check the soundtrack credits, not the cast page, for the real voices behind Huntr/X.

For a deeper look at who speaks and who sings, see the dual-cast breakdown at National Journal.

Frequently asked questions