No one knew the fandom around “KPop Demon Hunters” was going to explode, but the love for the most-streamed movie of 2025 just continues to go up, up, up. And McDonald’s joined the conversation with its latest meal collab, designed as a “Battle for the Fans.”
At the end of March, McDonald’s teamed up with Netflix to offer two new meals for adults: The Saja Boys Breakfast Meal and The HUNTR/X Meal. Fans were invited to choose a side with their meal orders, and they received Korean-inspired spins on classic menu items and a collectible card pack with access to exclusive online content.
Then, McDonald’s took the dueling meals a step further by hosting a “Battle for the Fans: After Dark” event for the L.A. community at The Bellwether on April 2. Fans who scored a golden ticket got to participate in K-pop sing-alongs, dance contests and challenges throughout the night for a chance to win exclusive merch.
Cosplay was encouraged, and 800 fans showed out. DJ Ben Kang kept the K-pop beats flowing, while dressed as Abby Saja, and brand characters Ronald McDonald and Grimace showed off their moves in a viral dance-off.
Not only were the two meals available to sample, attendees also showed their allegiance to HUNTR/X or the Saja Boys by snapping photos in front of their chosen step-and-repeat and by pressing buttons at a voting station. The HUNTR/X Meal’s Ramyeon McShaker Fries and the Derpy McFlurry were big hits among fans.
“Knowing that ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ is such a massive, fast-growing IP, we recognize that this highly engaged fan base wants, and needs, moments to connect in real life, so we jumped at the opportunity to create a shared space where they can come together and celebrate their fandom,” says Heather Woodard, director-brand partnerships and experiences at McDonald’s. “This event allowed us to bring together their core fan behaviors, including cosplay, singing, dancing and community interaction, in a tangible, immersive and really authentic environment.”
McDonald’s and its agency partner IW Group saw that experiential around the film was limited, so they filled the gap by bringing the world to life “for the fans,” just like the movie’s premise.
“We didn’t leave any detail out because we know as fans ourselves that every piece of this had to be curated for the fans,” says Suzie Bao, vp, group account director-McDonald’s at IW Group. “It was so important to integrate the two iconic brands, like the fact that the meals had the flavor profile of Korean cuisine, but also the characters actually learned K-pop dance and all the K-pop nuances, like the [Korean finger] heart.”
Singer-songwriter Kevin Woo, the singing voice of Mystery Saja, made a surprise appearance at “Battle for the Fans: After Dark.” He met and took photos with VIPs and went on stage to perform a snippet of “Soda Pop.” Of course, the audience went wild.
Woodard says the demand for the event significantly exceeded capacity, with 1,000 people still on the waitlist before the doors opened. Still, lines wrapped around the block, and the team monitored flow and capacity to let in as many fans as they could.
Bao adds: “As soon as we were able to announce the collab, because we kept it a secret up until maybe a week or so before the campaign launched, we just put it out there on social. We were working with a few influencers, and they helped spread the word, but word flew pretty fast. Most of our RSVPs came from social, so we knew that was the way to reach this fan base.”
McDonald’s employed targeted influencer engagement to extend the experience beyond the evening, giving fans at home a chance to be part of the conversation and fandom.
“Impact doesn’t always require scale. This event was deliberately bespoke and fan-forward, successfully bringing two iconic brands together in a way that felt authentic and memorable,” Woodard says. “When we do events, we don’t want it to just be a one-and-done, but we want it to be unmissable. McDonald’s is a company that is about creating memories.”
That’s how it’s done, done, done. (Agency: IW Group)
Photos: Courtesy of McDonald’s
