A Christian metal band is suing Netflix over K-pop Demon Hunters. Demon Hunter, a long-running Christian metal band, has filed a trademark infringement and unfair competition lawsuit in California against Netflix and concert promoter AEG Presents.
The band claims that the title K-Pop Demon Hunters, along with concerts related to the movie, is “confusingly similar” to their own name. Demon Hunter cites a real-life situation where this confusion became clear, where a parent mistakenly bought $500 in concert tickets to the metal band, thinking it was related to the animated movie from Sony Pictures Animation. Hyde Lane, Demon Hunter’s lead singer, is seeking damages, restitution, and a court order to seize/impound merchandise and halt the use of the name.
Lane also argues in the lawsuit that the name creates intentional confusion with an already established brand by saying the following:
“Simply put, Netflix is no more entitled to use the mark KPOP DEMON HUNTERS than it would be to launch a recording artist, live touring show, and merchandise under the marks KPOP METALLICA, KPOP U2, or KPOP BLACK SABBATH.”
This comment, in particular, has sparked resistance to the lawsuit, with many critics claiming the lawsuit is being made by a band jealous that a film with a similar name is receiving such vast success. Many critics also argue that it’s a stretch to see the similarities, given the differences in musical genres, with Demon Hunter being Christian metal and K-Pop Demon Hunters being K-POP, and that the name “Demon Hunter” is a common, generic term used in various fantasy media.
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