Netflix continues to dominate the streaming world, and it's honestly not hard to see why. The streamer pumps out so much so-called "content" that I'm starting to wonder if half of this stuff isn't already generated by some god-awful AI. However, amid the media onslaught, Netflix released some pretty good movies in 2024especially the killer action thriller Rebel Ridge, which certainly went a long way to helping the star Aaron Pierre has landed the role of Jon Stewart in the shared universe of DC and James Gunn on the rise.

Netflix also started 2025 strong, proving that streaming audiences still know a good movie when they see one, by delivering Christopher Nolan's Interstellar on its servers and watching it shoot to the top of the charts. No doubt there will be more films of the same quality for the rest of the year, with a sea of ​​otherwise unmemorable streaming slush. But as we brace ourselves for the next wave to come, another bought movie has slowly worked its way up the charts to ring in the new year. Unfortunately, this latest addition seems to be just as notable as any of Netflix's most generic original movies.

2024 year The Watchers, an uneven but promising debut from Ishana Night Shyamalan arrived on Netflix at the end of the year and, despite disappointing reviews, managed to grab the attention of Netflixers in the US

The Watchers stars Dakota Fanning as Mina, a young artist who gets stuck in an Irish forest where she and three other strangers are stalked by some sort of wretched beast. Ishana Night Shyamalan wrote and directed the horror film, which is based on AM Shine's 2021 novel of the same name, and also stars Georgina Campbell, Olwen Fuere and Oliver Finnegan. Shyamalan also had a fun role reversal with her famous father in The Watchers, with M. Night Shyamalan actually served as second unit director for the film.

Unfortunately, when The Watchers debuted in June 2024, it barely made it back 30 million dollars budget and failed to wow critics. The film then made the theatrical walk of shame from the box office to VOD by the end of that month and debuted before appearing on the MAX streaming service in August. Not the most handsome debut for the younger Shyamalan, then. But maybe its Netflix renaissance will be a consolation?

The Watchers hit Netflix on December 30, 2024 and has since proven to be a decent hit for the streamer. According to FlixPatrolsite that tracks streaming viewership across platforms, the film arrived on the list of most-watched films in the US on December 31, peaking at number seven before jumping to number five the following day. After peaking at number four on January 2, 2025, "The Watchers" fell to number eight before returning to reclaim number four from January 6.

At the time of writing, The Watchers is in contention for its fourth position out of two Despicable Me films. What's more, if the film wants to stay on the most-watched charts in the US, it will have to contend with the other film coming to Netflix in late 2024: Kevin Costner's box office bomb Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1. The western is currently in second place in the US, just behind Ron Howard's 2015 historical drama In the Heart of the Sea, which currently tops the Netflix charts.

If Ishana Night Shyamalan wants to see this Netflix delay through, then she'll have to topple Howard, Costner and George Miller, whose Furiosa: The Mad Max Saga is currently in third place. on the US charts. Unfortunately, a result of 32%. Rotten tomatoes It doesn't bode well for The Watchers in that regard. Critics took Shyamalan to task for essentially trying to recreate the tone and appeal of her father's films, but failing, despite some absolute visuals and a knack for jump scares. That said, it's not like any of us are turning to Netflix for the most cerebral or even the highest quality entertainment, so I guess The Watchers has as much of a chance of reaching number one as anything else.