Netflix is one of the most popular streaming services in the world, with over 280 million subscribers. And just what do those people tend to watch? In particular, what is the most popular movie on Netflix? Each week, the streaming service releases a list of its 10 most-watched movies over a recent seven-day period to keep subscribers in the loop regarding its most popular titles.
Carry-On is shaping up to be one of the biggest Netflix movies ever. The holiday thriller is now the fifth-most-popular movie on Netflix, passing Leave the World Behind. Elsewhere, this week’s top 10 belongs to Warner Bros., with Dune: Part Two, Interstellar, The Watchers, In the Heart of the Sea, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, and Horizon: An American Saga — Chapter 1 all occupying spots on the chart. Below, we’ve listed the top 10 movies in the U.S. from December 30 to January 5, along with general information about each film, such as genre, rating, cast, and synopsis.
Looking for something else? We’ve also rounded up the best new movies to stream this week, the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Amazon Prime, and the best movies on Disney+. For Netflix fans, check out the 10 most popular shows on Netflix right now.
10. The Forge (2024)
6.6/10Alex Kendrick is known for directing faith-based projects, including Facing the Giants, War Room, and Overcomer. His latest movie is The Forge, a Christian drama about a young man searching for answers about his future. Isaiah Wright (Aspen Kennedy) is your typical teenager who likes to play basketball and video games.
Isaiah is a recent high school graduate who does not know what he wants to do with his life. His mother, Cynthia (Priscilla Shirer), threatens to throw Isaiah out of the house if he does not get a job. Isaiah decides to get a job at Moore Fitness. The job eventually leads him to a new mentor and a life of prayer, as he learns to accept God and trust in his teachings.
9. Dune: Part Two (2024)
79%
8.5/10Dune: Part Two is the second movie in Denis Villeneuve’s two-part adaptation of Frank Herbert’s groundbreaking novel. After the destruction of his house, Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) and his mother, Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson), have acclimated with the Fremen in the deserts of Arrakis.
With the help of Chani (Zendaya), Paul becomes an important contributor to the Fremen, with Stilgar (Javier Bardem) believing the Atreides boy is their Messiah, the Lisan al Gaib. Paul hesitates to accept this title, remaining focused on freeing the Fremen and exacting his revenge on House Harkonnen. As the war for Arrakis wages on, Paul must make a difficult decision that will impact the universe’s future in this spectacular sci-fi epic.
8. Interstellar (2014)
74%
8.7/10What if humans were not supposed to live on Earth forever? That’s the question at the heart of Interstellar, Christopher Nolan’s sci-fi space adventure. In an alternate future, humanity is slowly dying due to crop blight and dust storms. When former pilot Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) discovers a strange anomaly, it leads him to NASA’s new headquarters, where he runs into a familiar face, Professor John Brand (Michael Caine).
NASA plans to send a team of researchers to a wormhole near Saturn that leads to another galaxy with potentially habitable planets on the other side. Cooper is asked to pilot the mission, which he reluctantly accepts. Cooper might have to make the ultimate sacrifice to save humanity, which could prevent him from ever seeing his family again.
7. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)
47%
6.1/10First, Godzilla and Kong were enemies. Now, they’re tag-team partners in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. Three years after the events of Godzilla vs. Kong, the two monsters have essentially called a truce. Godzilla continues to eliminate Titans who threaten humanity’s existence, while Kong lives in the Hollow Earth.
In Hollow Earth, a new predator, a giant ape known as the Skar King, is preparing an attack on the surface. Godzilla previously defeated the Skar King during the ice age. Now, the Skar King wants revenge, and this time, he has an ice-breathing Titan named Shimo by his side. To save the world, Godzilla and Kong must work together in this battle of epic proportions.
6. The Watchers (2024)
46%
5.7/10Ishana Night Shyamalan is the daughter of M. Night Shyamalan, so naturally, the young filmmaker directed a horror film, The Watchers, in her directorial debut. Based on A.M. Shine’s 2021 novel of the same name, The Watchers stars Dakota Fanning as Mina, an American whose car breaks down in the forest while traveling in Ireland. Looking for help, Mina finds a woman named Madeline (Olwen Fouéré), who tells her to enter a bunker if she wants to live.
Mina agrees and follows Madeline into the bunker, where she lives with Ciara (Georgina Campbell) and Daniel (Oliver Finnegan). At night, Mina learns that the group is visited by mysterious creatures known as “Watchers.” The Watchers will kill anyone outside at night. As time goes on, Mina realizes the Watchers are not friendly, forcing her to find an escape before it’s too late.
5. In the Heart of the Sea (2015)
46%
6.9/10The inspiration for Moby Dick comes to the big screen in Ron Howard’s In the Heart of the Sea. In 1820, a Nantucket whaling company commissions the Essex to head to sea and capture whale oil. The Essex’s crew includes Captain George Pollard Jr. (Benjamin Walker), first mate and veteran whaler Owen Chase (Chris Hemsworth), second mate Matthew Joy (Cillian Murphy), and cabin boy Thomas Nickerson (Tom Holland).
After capturing their first whale rather quickly, the Essex goes months without another kill. After traveling from the Atlantic to the Pacific, the crew encounters a massive sperm whale, which sinks the ship. Now, the crew must drift at sea with limited supplies as they pray for rescue.
4. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024)
79%
7.5/10Before she was an Imperator, she was just Furiosa. Set over a decade before the events of Fury Road, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga explores the rise of Furiosa (Anya Taylor-Joy), from her days in the Green Place of Many Mothers to her rise in the Wasteland. As a young girl, Furiosa is kidnapped by Dementus (Chris Hemsworth), the warlord leader of the Biker Horde.
As he rises in power, Dementus trades Furiosa to Immortan Joe (Lachy Hulme). To avoid being abused, Furiosa disguises herself as a mute War Boy and works her way up to become the commander of the War Rig. As the Dementus and Immortan Joe fight for control of the Wasteland, Furiosa desperately tries to escape and find her home.
3. Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1 (2024)
49%
6.7/10Experience the battle for the Old West in Kevin Costner’s Western epic Horizon: An American Saga — Chapter 1. Spanning four years of the Civil War, from 1861 to 1865, Horizon: An American Saga follows several characters migrating to the Old West. The ensemble includes Hayes Ellison (Kevin Costner), Frances Kittredge (Sienna Miller), Owen Kittredge (Will Patton), First Lt. Trent Gephardt (Sam Worthington), Caleb Sykes (Jamie Campbell Bower), and H. Silas Pickering (Giovanni Ribisi).
Chapter 1 is the first part of a four-film franchise. Chapter 2 has been filmed, but it remains without a release date. Horizon is imperfect, but Costner captures enough Western magic in this effective and ambitious drama.
2. The Six Triple Eight (2024)
61%
6.4/10Tyler Perry writes and directs The Six Triple Eight, based on the inspiring true story of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, the only Women’s Army Corps unit of color stationed overseas in WWII. During the war, mail from the soldiers is not being delivered to their loved ones at home.
To alleviate the issue, the 800-plus women in the 6888 are tasked with sorting through 17 million pieces of mail. It’s a seemingly impossible task, as the 6888 is given a deadline of six months to establish a post office and send out the mail. Despite facing poor work conditions and racism, the 6888 overcame the odds to become heroes.
1. Carry-On (2024)
68%
6.6/10After helming two blockbusters, Jaume Collet-Serra is back making B-movie thrillers. His latest offering is Carry-On, an action thriller starring Taron Egerton and Jason Bateman. TSA agent Ethan Kopek (Egerton) is working at the airport on Christmas Eve when he comes across a mysterious earpiece on his security line.
On the other line of the earpiece is a mysterious traveler (Bateman), who blackmails Ethan into letting a dangerous package slip through TSA. If Ethan refuses, the traveler will kill Nora (Sofia Carson), Ethan’s pregnant girlfriend. Refusing to let innocent people die, Ethan decides to play by the traveler’s rules while simultaneously conjuring up a plan to save the airport.
