The surprise SVOD hit of 2020 is not “Hamilton”, “Mulan” or...

My spy, an adorable action comedy starring Dave Bautista and Chloe Coleman, was this year’s streaming sensation under the radar.

diversity I just posted a list of the top 20 most watched movies in America via subscription-based streaming services in 2020. The results are a little surprising. First, despite its dominance in terms of subscriber numbers and media coverage, Netflix

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“Only” has 11 of the top 20 titles, the rest is distributed on Amazon Prime

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, Hulu, Disney

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+ and HBO max. Second, the third most popular film behind Disney’s Hamilton and Amazon Borat: Follow-up film (which debuted just two weeks ago) is owned by Amazon My spy. Yes, the action comedy by Dave Bautista / Chloe Coleman, an STX Entertainment studio programmer, sent to Amazon after the COVID release date was published, had a greater 7 day viewership than any of the much-touted original Netflix features.

Heck, Disney + ’s Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Candace versus the Universe and Mulan (which cost Disney + subscribers an additional $ 29.99) had a higher viewership in its first week than any other Netflix movie than Chris Hemsworth’s extraction. That’s not necessarily a hit on Netflix, like A) Phineas and Ferb is an extremely popular (and great) Disney TV show, B) Mulan It was expected to make $ 450 million to $ 850 million globally before the theatrical release schedule was changed and C) Most Netflix movies are original or “New For You” movies. Given the mixed reviews and hostile theatrical environment for comedic comedies, Paramount’s

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Die Lovebirds (for example) Certainly, Netflix has reached a larger audience (it’s tenth overall) than it would have originally caught in theaters last April. The same applies My spy.

The Kumail Nanjiani / Issa Rae rom-com thriller had better initial viewership than Lily James and Armie Hammers’ more vaunted Rebecca Remake, just like Lost girls seemed to have a larger audience than (for example) Will FerrellEurovision and the youth oriented The kiss stand 2This again shows that the films we write about in the media and the films that audiences actually see don’t always correlate. As for My spyIt’s not a sequel or a branded concept, but an original (albeit formulaic) star + concept film. It’s Dave Bautista’s turn as the action star who becomes humanized (and happier) by partnering with a child. The surprise was, apart from Aaron Sorkins Trial of Chicago 7, My 2020 favorite “should be in theaters” streaming releases.

Thanks to the quirky dialogue, strong chemistry between the cop and kid, and a solid supporting cast (including Kristen Schaal, Parisa Fitz-Henley and Ken Jeong who steals the scene), the film makes the most of its worn-out premise. There’s just enough action and violence, including some “funny” gore, to make kids think they can get away with something. The core relationships are absolutely solid, while the Peter Segal-directed film acts as a comedy and a non-blockbuster action film. There’s supposedly a sequel in development that, sadly, probably wouldn’t have happened if it had opened in theaters earlier this year for the expected $ 10 million. Since the film wasn’t a major media event, the first hit was arguably about word of mouth as much as it was old-school marketing.

The top 20 films are Hamilton (Disney), Borat 2 (Amazonas), My spy (Amazonas), extraction (Netflix), Phineas and Ferb (Disney), Mulan (Disney), The old guard (Netflix), The Chicago Trial 7 (Netflix), The witches (HBO Max), Die Lovebirds (Netflix), Rebecca (Netflix), Project performance (Netflix), Enola Holmes (Netflix), Black is king (Disney), Madea’s farewell game (Amazonas), Da 5 Bloods (Netflix), Bad hair (Hulu), Artemis poultry (Disney), Lost girls (Netflix) and An American cucumber (HBO Max). A high-profile streaming original feature is now likely being released on Amazon or Disney + as often as Netflix. The streaming competitors may want to be more open about viewership. When Netflix is ​​the only service that consistently brags, they create a perception of dominance.

Seven of the top ten streaming hits this year (and nine out of 20) were must-see movies. Hamilton was acquired by Disney for a theatrical release in October 2021, sold to Paramount Chicago Trial 7 and Die Lovebirds to Netflix and Enola Holmes was originally a legendary film intended for theatrical distribution through Warner Bros. Seth Rogen’s American cucumber was sold by Sony during STX My spy ended up on Amazon. Mulan, Artemis Poultry and The witches should appear in domestic cinemas this year. Even though everyone is debating the future of the theater exhibition, films made for theater like how My spy, Enola Holmes and Die Lovebirds, Still have an advantage over strict streaming offers thanks to their presumed production value and prestige.