Most of us already know Grand Theft Auto 6 is going to be a huge deal this year. The new game release on November 19th, just before Black Friday shopping deals come down the pipeline. So, when Netflix dropped its Grand Theft Auto VI: An Extended Look doc, I wasn’t shocked to see it skyrocket onto the top 10 list. What does surprise me? A 13 year old comedy is also solidly sticking there, despite what I can only describe as one big challenge.
What movie am I talking about? The Heat with Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy. The Paul Feig film was his follow-up to the insane hit Bridesmaids, and when it was released it made $229 million globally. Not bad for a comedy made on a $43 million budget. So, of course, there are plenty of people that feel fondly about the movie. But that’s not what I find really shocking.
What I find shocking is 1. The movie is trending globally at No. 6 despite the fact it’s not even available in the United States. In fact, if you want to watch a Melissa McCarthy movie stateside, you’ll need to go for Identity Thief, Thunder Force, or God’s Favorite Idiot. This is a big feat. Sure, Netflix has 325 subscribers globally, but amidst those about 66.7 million are located in the US alone, so the movie is losing a large swathe of eyeballs right out of the gate thanks to not being available here.
Despite this, the movie has stayed on the Global Top 10 list, and it has done so for several weeks since entering the charts. So, clearly it’s one comedy that translates worldwide. We can thank the combined powers of countries like Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Egypt, Greece, Italy, Mexico, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and the UK, among others.
It’s frequently true that Netflix originals fare better on their global and domestic Top 10 TV and movie lists than syndicated content, but I’m always fascinated when there is an exception. Shows like Suits and Criminal Minds have seen huge audiences after syndicating on the streamer, and both of those wins led to resurgences (albeit short-lived for Suits: LA) for both franchises.
The Heat making its mark is exceptional not just because the movie is 13 years old, but also, it’s sticking on the list despite not being available in the US and despite facing competition from actual new Netflix releases like the Extended Look at GTA VI and Don’t Say Good Luck.
I will mention August is always a slow month for new content, but this is still impressive. Maybe someone should let Sandra Bullock know how beloved this comedy still is. I hear she’s the holdup on The Heat 2 (not to be confused with Heat 2).
