For months, I’ve written about how Netflix and its streaming brethren are notoriously secretive about viewership numbers when it comes to original films and series. In the past, Netflix has been the biggest offender, only releasing statistics when it suits them and using vague numbers as evidence. This sort of methodology has been adopted by the likes of Disney, Hulu, Apple, Amazon, and the rest. To say it’s frustrating to someone that enjoys statistics and facts, particularly in a world with box office numbers and TV ratings (as flawed as they are), is an understatement.
Well, according to Bloomberg, Netflix has finally given us a more detailed peek into what the platforms most popular films of all time looks like. And unsurprisingly, it’s vague. And even more obvious, the list features films that are just flat-out terrible, showing that Netflix spends big money on the likes of Adam Sandler and Michael Bay for a reason.
Before we get to the films, the “evidence” that Netflix uses to back up the claim that the 10 films are the most popular is a bit flimsy, as you might expect. The numbers only account for viewers of films in the first four weeks. And not only that, Netflix qualifies a “viewer” as someone that watches at least two minutes of a film. So, don’t begin to think that nearly 100 million people watched “Extraction” all the way through. That’s just false.
That being said, as mentioned, “Extraction” does lead the field with 99 million viewers in its first four weeks of availability. That’s followed by the meme-ified film “Bird Box” and Peter Berg’s latest collab with Mark Wahlberg, “Spenser Confidential.” The rest of the top ten includes films from Adam Sandler, Michael Bay, and obviously, a teen rom-com featuring Noah Centineo. But perhaps the most egregious inclusion is “The Wrong Missy,” starring David Spade, which might be one of the very worst films of 2020, if not the past decade. And yet, Netflix claims 59 million people “viewed” the film. Let’s hope this is drastically exaggerated.
But they’re not all bad choices. Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman” accounts for 64 million viewers and the sixth overall spot. That’s followed by “Triple Frontier,” which got mixed reviews but is still leagues better than “6 Underground” or “Spenser Confidential.” And then you have “The Platform,” a pandemic-era hit that built up from strong word-of-mouth and is actually well worth a view.
Needless to say, the numbers might not be completely honest, but given the 10 films are all using the same measurements, Netflix is giving us an accurate look at what people view the most on the platform. And apparently, all that’s needed is to be an Adam Sandler-esque comedy or an action film with a big star to attract the massive streaming numbers. God help us all.
Here’s the full top 10, according to Netflix:
“Extraction” (99 million)
“Bird Box” (89 million)
“Spenser Confidential” (85 million)
“6 Underground” (83 million)
“Murder Mystery” (73 million)
“The Irishman” (64 million)
“Triple Frontier” (63 million)
“The Wrong Missy” (59 million)
“The Platform” (56 million)
“The Perfect Date” (48 million)