When a South Korean monk performed a Buddhist ritual for a wildly popular K-pop boy band, it was the most unusual ceremony he had ever held.

His mission: to guide the souls of the band to peace and rebirth.

The band were long gone - or rather, they had never been alive, except in the fictional world of the animated Netflix hit K-pop Demon Hunters.

Still, the YouTube video went viral.

Although cast as villains, the Saja Boys have won a devoted following for their gorgeous looks and swagger. Even their name - saja - translates to angel of death, among other things.

The live-streamed service, a genuine Buddhist rite known as Chondojae, usually performed by monks for grieving families, lasted more than two hours and drew more than 4,000 viewers - more people than he had ever seen for a ceremony, even offline, says the monk, a virtual YouTuber who prefers to remain anonymous.

This was no joke. The BBC confirmed that he is a registered monk. But he could not guarantee salvation for the Saja Boys, not even for the lead, Jinu.

That would depend on his good karma. I can guide him, but I can't promise.

As K-pop Demon Hunters tops every chart - Netflix says it has become its most watched movie ever - Koreans are reveling in the moment. Made and voiced by Korean-Americans and produced by US studios Sony and Netflix, the film's inspiration is deeply Korean.

It's a tale about mythical demon hunters whose power comes from their music - in this case, that's a sassy K-pop girl band called Huntrix. And of course, the soundtrack that fans across the world are now singing along to every day is rooted in South Korea's biggest export: K-pop.

All of this has sparked a frenzy in South Korea, like in so many other places, a fascination with the Korean culture the movie centers, and even a little bit of FOMO - because unlike in the US and Canada, there are no plans yet to release the movie in cinemas here.

Fans have been lining up eagerly outside the National Museum of Korea, with the museum recording over twice its average monthly visitors since the film's release. Merchants and craftspeople, such as Choi Nyun-hee, have seen revenue spikes attributed to the surge in interest in Korean culture and art influenced by the film.

Excitement continues to build for potential cinema screenings in South Korea, reflecting both the movie's success and the Korean audience's deep connection to K-pop and Korean cultural representations.