If you were on social media during the holiday week, the chatter for Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery was high. From fan reactions to Ben Shaprio’s hilarious meltdown, it was the talk of the town.
Now, the word is paying off as Rian Johnson’s latest successfully hit the streamer, with Glass Onion amassing 82.1 million hours streamed in its first three days, leaving it just outside the Top 5 debuts as Netflix’s sixth biggest film launch.
The lighter debut could be accounted for the theatrical release Rian Johnson’s murder mystery saw earlier this fall, bringing in about $13 million over the five-day holiday. That number was reportedly strong for a film released in under 700 theaters. However, the industry reports that the movie left millions on the table by not pushing for a longer theatrical run. Now looking at the Netflix debut, could a more extended cinema run hurt the debut of Netflix’s prized projects?
Looking at the other top five releases, Glass Onion has a lot in common. They all feature A-list stars in mostly comedy-leaning projects from pretty well-known filmmakers. Red Notice is in the top spot with 148.72 million hours viewed, Adam McKay’s Don’t Look Up saw 111.03 million hours last Christmas, The Adam Project makes it to the top three with 92.43, The Gray Man and The Unforgivable round out the top ten with 88.55 million and 85.96 million respectively.
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (a title the director doesn’t even love) is far from a flop. It will live strongly on the streaming service and saw pretty great fan and audience reactions. A third film is already planned, with Rian Johnson signing a bumper deal for multiple Benoit Blanc-focused movies back in 2021.
Like the future of even more films from Johnson and leading man Daniel Craig, the prospect of coexistence between theaters and Netflix is possible. Both will need to find a middle ground to keep the strength of Netflix’s service while giving some of their films a fair shot at a big screen run. Rian Johnson said he would be open to seeing Glass Onion in theaters again; maybe the streamer can re-release it for awards season?
You’re invited to put the pieces together. In the follow-up to Rian Johnson’s Knives Out, Detective Benoit Blanc travels to Greece to peel back the layers of a mystery involving a new cast of colorful suspects.
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery stars Daniel Craig, Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr., Jessica Henwick, Madelyn Cline, Kate Hudson, and Dave Bautista.
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is streaming on Netflix.
