Dakota Fanning’s horror movie is getting a second chance on Netflix

Netflix continues to dominate the streaming space, and honestly it’s not hard to see why. The streaming device pumps out so much so-called “content” that I’m starting to wonder if half of it isn’t already generated by terrible AI. And still, amid the media attack. Netflix has put out some very good movies in 2024most notably the killer thriller “Rebel Ridge,” which certainly went a long way in helping the star Aaron Bier gets the role of John Stewart in DC and James Gunn’s thriving shared universe.

Netflix started off 2025 strong as well, proving that streaming audiences still know a good movie when they’ve seen one by its delivery. Christopher Nolan’s ‘Interstellar’ hits its servers and sees it top the charts. The rest of the year will no doubt see more of the same quality filmmaking permeated by a sea of ​​unforgettable slow-burning. But as we prepare for the next wave, there’s another acquired film slowly making its way to the top of the charts to kick off the new year. Unfortunately, this latest addition feels as noteworthy as any of the more generic Netflix originals.

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

Dakota Fanning stars in “The Watchers” as Mina, a young artist stranded in an Irish forest where she and three other strangers are stalked by wretched monsters 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 Faure and Oliver Finnegan. Shyamalan also had a fun role with her 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 was barely a hit 30 million dollars budget and failed to impress critics. The film then made the theatrical walk of infamy from the box office to VOD by the end of the same month it debuted before arriving on the MAX streaming service in August. So, this is not an auspicious debut for the younger Shyamalan. But maybe its Netflix renaissance will come as some relief?

‘The Watchers’ premiered on Netflix on December 30, 2024, and has since proven to be a good success for the streamer. according to Flex Patrola site that tracks streaming across platforms, the film reached the list of most-watched films in the United States on December 31, reaching seventh place before jumping to fifth place the next day. After reaching No. 4 on January 2, 2025, “The Watchers” fell to No. 8 before returning to regain No. 4 as of January 6.

At the time of writing, “The Watchers” is being challenged for fourth place by two “Despicable Me” films. Furthermore, if the film is to remain on the most watched charts in the US, it will have to compete with other films to arrive on Netflix at the end of 2024: Kevin Costner’s box office bomb, “Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1.” The Western currently sits at No. 2 in the US, behind Ron Howard’s 2015 historical drama “In the Heart of the Sea,” which is currently sitting at the top of the Netflix charts.

If Ishana Night Shyamalan is going to see the Netflix show delayed until the end, she’ll have to unseat Howard, Costner and George Miller, whose “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” currently sits in third place. On the US charts. Unfortunately, he got 32%. Rotten tomatoes It doesn’t bode all that good for “The Watchers” in that regard. Critics faulted Shyamalan for essentially trying to recreate the tone and appeal of her father’s films but failing, despite some attractive visuals and a knack for jump scares. However, it’s not as if any of us turn to Netflix for the most thoughtful or even the best quality entertainment, so I think “The Watchers” has as much of a chance of hitting No. 1 as anything else.