Dakota Fanning’s horror movie gets a second chance on Netflix

Netflix continues to dominate the streaming sphere and, frankly, it’s not hard to see why. The transmitter emits so much “content” that I’m starting to wonder if half of this stuff isn’t already being generated by some horrible AI. Still, amid the media rush, Netflix released some pretty good movies in 2024, notably the killer action thriller “Rebel Ridge,” which surely went a long way toward helping star Aaron Pierre land the role of John Stewart in DC and James. Gunn’s burgeoning shared universe.

Netflix also started 2025 strong, proving that streaming audiences still know a good movie when they see one by delivering Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar” to its servers and watching it rise to the top of the charts. Without a doubt, the rest of the year we will see more films of the same quality that will mark an otherwise forgettable sea of ​​​​streaming. But as we prepare for the next wave, another acquired film has been slowly climbing the charts to ring in the new year. Unfortunately, this latest addition seems about as notable as any of the more generic Netflix original movies.

2024’s “The Watchers,” an uneven but promising debut from Ishana Night Shyamalan, arrived on Netflix at the end of the year and, despite disappointing reviews, managed to capture the attention of Netflix users in the US.

“The Watchers” stars Dakota Fanning as Mina, a young artist who becomes stranded in an Irish forest where she and three other strangers are stalked by wretched beasts of some kind. Ishana Night Shyamalan wrote and directed the horror film, which is based on AM Shine’s 2021 novel of the same name and also stars Georgina Campbell, Olwen Fouéré and Oliver Finnegan. Shyamalan also had a fun role swap with his famous father in “The Watchers,” with M. Night Shyamalan serving as the film’s second unit director.

Unfortunately, when “The Watchers” debuted in June 2024, it barely recovered. $30 million budget and failed to surprise critics. The film then made the theatrical walk of shame from the box office to VOD at the end of the same month it debuted before arriving on the MAX streaming service in August. So, it’s not the most auspicious debut for the young Shyamalan. But maybe its Netflix revival will be some consolation?

“The Watchers” arrived on Netflix on December 30, 2024 and has since proven to be a decent hit for the streamer. According FlixPatrola site that tracks streaming viewership across platforms, the film hit the list of most-watched movies in the US on December 31, peaking at number seven before jumping to number five the next day. After peaking at number four on January 2, 2025, “The Watchers” fell to number eight before returning to regain the number four spot as of January 6.

As of this writing, “The Watchers” is being challenged for its number four position by two “Despicable Me” movies. What’s more, if the film wants to remain on the most watched lists in the United States, it will have to compete with the other film that will arrive on Netflix at the end of 2024: Kevin Costner’s own box office bomb, “Horizon: An American Saga “. – Chapter 1.” The Western is currently at number two in the US, just behind Ron Howard’s 2015 historical drama “In the Heart of the Sea,” which is currently at the top of the charts. Netflix lists.

If Ishana Night Shyamalan is going to see this Netflix respite through to the end, then she’ll have to take down Howard, Costner and George Miller, whose “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” is currently at number three. on the US charts. Unfortunately, a score of 32% in rotten tomatoes doesn’t bode well for “The Watchers” in that regard. Critics criticized Shyamalan for essentially trying to recreate the tone and appeal of his father’s films, but he fell short, despite some dazzling visuals and a knack for jump scares. That said, it’s not like any of us turn to Netflix for the most cerebral, or even the best quality, entertainment, so I guess “The Watchers” has as much of a chance of hitting number one as anything else.