Kpop Demon Hunters took the genre scene by surprise, as the Netflix film has become one of the most successful of the year thanks to its incredible animation, story, soundtrack and fun characters. Now, during a recent interview, animator Min Hong finally revealed who the inspiration behind the leader of the Saja Boys is.
“In order to bring to life the facial expressions of Jinu, the leader of Saja Boys, we referenced Kai, a member of the idol group EXO a lot.”
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KAI was mentioned by animator Min Hong of the film 'K-Pop Demon Hunters':
"To bring the facial expressions of Jinu to life, the leader of SAJA BOYS, we heavily referenced KAI, a member of the idol group EXO."
🔗https://t.co/AvLw4xYRuJ#KAI #카이 pic.twitter.com/yYR968kFNN
— KAI Press (@kai__press) July 29, 2025
Of course, this confession has greatly surprised the fan community, since it had previously been mentioned that Jinu was also inspired by idol Cha Eunwoo from ASTRO and by actor Nam Joo Hyuk. It seems that Jinu is a mix of these three truly handsome and talented young men.
Some EXO fans have felt a bit disappointed by the late reveal and have left comments on social media expressing their opinions. One netizen said: “Why are they crediting EXO so late?? Why couldn’t they do it when the animation was trending everywhere?” and others left similar comments.
And the truth is that Kpop Demon Hunters has become a massive global hit, breaking records on Netflix and even having its soundtrack dominate music charts all over the world. Now, with this revelation, EXO-Ls, the name of EXO’s fandom, will be even more delighted to support the movie, knowing that Kai is the inspiration behind Jinu.
Jinu from the Saja Boys became one of the most beloved characters in the film, generating thousands of edits on social media thanks to his charismatic personality, beautiful animation, and heartwarming expressions inspired by EXO’s Kai, everything about him is simply charming.
