In recent years, Netflix has been much more forthright and communicative about its streaming data. That includes its semi-regular Engagement Reports, the latest of which was published on Thursday. This report covers the first half of 2024, from January to June, and while there aren’t many big surprises for those of us who have been keeping a close eye on Netflix’s Top 10 site, seeing a comprehensive list like this can still be illuminating.
Honestly, our biggest takeaway is that the chasm of quality between Netflix’s original shows and its original movies is as wide as ever. Unsurprisingly, shows like Bridgerton, Baby Reindeer, and 3 Body Problem all made the top 10 in terms of hours viewed. We watched Baby Reindeer win 6 Emmys over the weekend, including Outstanding Lead Actor for Richard Gadd and Outstanding Supporting Actress for Jessica Gunning.
On the flip side, let’s take a look at the top 10 original Netflix movies in the first half of the year. I could even expand the list to include the top 25, but I’d struggle to find not only any future award winners but even a handful of movies audiences or critics enjoyed.
Obviously, awards aren’t everything, and Rotten Tomatoes/IMDb don’t determine the objective quality or value of a movie. That said, outside of the genuinely fantastic survival drama Society of the Snow (which actually came out in 2023), the top 10 is loaded with absolute stinkers. Lift, Atlas, Mother of the Bride, both Rebel Moons, and Irish Wish all failed to crack 30% on Rotten Tomatoes, despite being 6 of the streamer’s 10 biggest movies of the year so far.
With that out of the way, here are the top 25 most-watched movies and most-watched shows on Netflix for the first half of 2024, based on hours viewed:
Netflix: Top 25 movies of 1H 2024
- Damsel
- Society of the Snow
- Lift
- Atlas
- Under Paris
- The Super Mario Bros. Movie
- Rebel Moon — Part One: A Child of Fire
- Mother of the Bride
- Rebel Moon — Part Two: The Scargiver
- Irish Wish
- Minions
- Mea Culpa
- The Boss Baby
- Badland Hunters
- The Equalizer 3
- Leo
- Leave the World Behind
- Woody Woodpecker Goes to Camp
- Trigger Warning
- Despicable Me 3
- The Tearsmith
- Shrek
- The Abyss
- The Wages of Fear
- Top Gun: Maverick
Netflix: Top 25 shows of 1H 2024
- Bridgerton: Season 3
- Fool Me Once: Limited Series
- Queen of Tears: Limited Series
- Avatar The Last Airbender: Season 1
- The Gentlemen: Season 1
- 3 Body Problem: Season 1
- Griselda: Limited Series
- Baby Reindeer: Limited Series
- Berlin: Season 1
- Bridgerton: Season 1
- My Demon: Limited Series
- Love Is Blind: Season 6
- True Beauty: Limited Series
- Bridgerton: Season 2
- One Day: Limited Series
- Doctor Slump: Limited Series
- My Life With the Walter Boys: Season 1
- Welcome to Samdal-ri: Limited Series
- King the Land: Limited Series
- The Brothers Sun: Season 1
- The Asunta Case: Limited Series
- Young Sheldon: Season 1
- House, M.D.: Season 1
- Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story
- Raising Voices: Season 1
Here’s hoping that Netflix can reverse the trend in the second half of the year with some better movies. There will always be another season of a Netflix original to watch, but now I’m realizing why I haven’t been opening Netflix to check for new movies lately.
