Don't Look Up Just Hit A Major Netflix Milestone

According to The Wall Street Journal, director Adam McKay aimed to bring back the genre of doomsday comedy with his latest film, "Don't Look Up." The comedy movie certainly has the right premise to pull off this goal. "Don't Look Up" focuses on Randall Mindy (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Kate Dibiasky (Jennifer Lawrence), two University of Michigan astronomers who discover a comet that is on a deadly course to hit the Earth. In most films where a familiar scenario plays out, audiences would then watch as the scientists tell the president about a planet-destroying comet, and plans are immediately put into action to save everyone. Instead, Randall and Kate must contend with a president (Meryl Streep) who prefers popularity to reality, a White House Administration that shows indifference instead of taking up a necessary call to action, and the public's less-than-lukewarm reaction to the news of the impending apocalypse.

"Don't Look Up" is a political and social satire set against the backdrop of an impending global catastrophe. And while that might hit a little close to home given the current state of the world, it does offer plenty of cathartic laughs and neat small details that easily warrant another viewing. This is why it's probably no surprise that "Don't Look Up" just achieved a major Netflix milestone despite only being out for almost two weeks.

Following its Netflix debut on December 24, 2021, "Don't Look Up" appears to have reeled in countless households and had them in stitches with its darkly amusing tale. According to data from Netflix's Top 10 site, the Adam McKay-directed comedy has already become the third most-watched film ever within two weeks of its premiere — 11 days, to be exact, at the time of writing. Per the official page, "Don't Look Up" has earned more than 263 million watch hours before it's hit the 28-day mark used to help tally these giant stats. 

The holiday months gave the bountiful gift of tremendous views to the streaming service. The last two months of 2021 provided Netflix with two of their biggest hit films as "Red Notice," which came out in November 2021, currently sits at the top spot ahead of "Bird Box," which has approximately 364 million watch hours, and "Don't Look Up."

"Red Notice," which stars Dwayne Johnson, Ryan Reynolds, and Gal Gadot, has already shattered another stunning Netflix record by having the biggest opening day for a film on the streaming service. It's also notable that "Don't Look Up" and "Red Notice" pulled a staggering amount of views despite critical reception to both films being mixed. However, their audience scores on Rotten Tomatoes seem to back up their Top Ten status on the streaming giant. "Don't Look Up" has a respectable 72%, while "Red Notice" has an impressive 92%.

Stream "Don't Look Up" right now on Netflix.