"Under Paris" sets historic Netflix viewership record

Jaw-dropping. "It's the latest low-budget non-English language film to show the big US studios how popular entertainment is done," wrote a BBC journalist. He exaggerated a bit because "Under Paris" is neither cheap nor a good film. Nevertheless, unlike recent Hollywood productions, it achieved spectacular commercial success.

A few hours ago, Netflix announced that "Under Paris" was viewed by 41 million viewers during its premiere weekend. The French production achieved one of the best results in the streaming platform's history, breaking two records and utterly outclassing the competition.

Firstly, "Under Paris" boasts the best opening in history among non-English films. The achievement is impressive for breaking the record and the huge margin over other titles. Previous record holders, the Norwegian "Troll" and the Spanish "Nowhere," gathered around 24 million viewers during their premiere weekends.

Secondly, "Under Paris" achieved the best opening result this year, even outperforming much more expensive American productions. However, it's worth noting that the French film still had one of the biggest budgets (if not the biggest) among non-English Netflix productions. The movie cost $25 million. By comparison, the high-profile German film "All Quiet on the Western Front" cost $20 million. On the other hand, the American "Atlas" had a budget of $100 million.

The best Netflix openings this year (feature films):

1. "Sharks in the Seine" – 41 million viewers.

2. "Damsel" – 35 million viewers.

3. "Lift" – 33 million viewers.

4. "Atlas" – 28 million viewers.

5. "Mother of the Bride" – 27 million viewers.

The commercial success of the French production is immense, but the film has garnered rather poor reviews. Interestingly, critics seem to like it more (65% positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes) than viewers (only 35% positive opinions). For Netflix, however, viewership is what matters most. And by that measure, "Under Paris" stands among the platform's greatest successes.