Netflix’s 8-Year-Old Thriller Is the Biggest Horror Movie in Streaming History

There’s little doubt that Netflix has been home to some great original horror thrillers over the years. However, while movies like Gerald’s Game, the Fear Street trilogy, and The Babysitter have all become favorites in the past decade, there is one film from 2018 that has them all beat in terms of viewership numbers. Eight years later, it’s still the most-watched horror movie in Netflix history.

Cover Your Eyes or Die In Netflix’s Biggest Horror Movie

Hitting Netflix on Dec. 14, 2018, Netflix’s hottest original horror movie is based on a 2014 novel by author Josh Malerman. Titled Bird Box, the film stars Sandra Bullock as a woman trying to protect two children in a post-apocalyptic world threatened by mysterious entities. Released the same year as A Quiet Place, it’s not the creatures who are blind in this one, but rather everyone else who is forced to cover their eyes if they want to survive, heightening the film’s suspense.

Also starring Vivien Lyra Blair, Julian Edwards, Trevante Rhodes, Sarah Paulson, and John Malkovich, Bird Box begins with Bullock’s character, Malorie Hayes, instructing two children to not take off their blindfolds as they traverse down a winding river, otherwise they will die. Cut to five years earlier, and it’s revealed why.

Living her best, pregnant life, Malorie finds herself in complete chaos when unexplained mass suicides start spreading across the globe. As the situation becomes more dire, she takes shelter with a group inside a house. No one really knows what’s going on, but one religious zealot suggests it’s the end times, and humanity is being judged by demonic entities. Anyone who looks upon them is driven insane, killing themselves in the process.

Of course, the good thing that Malorie and the group have going on eventually blows up in their faces, and she’s forced to flee along with Tom (Rhodes), who saved her from certain death and brought her to the safehouse. Five years later, they’re living with two kids shown earlier, who have been stripped of their identity and are simply referred to as Boy and Girl. Receiving transmissions from survivors informing them of a safe community hidden in the forest, they set out for a better life, navigating the treacherous terrain completely blindfolded.

‘Bird Box’ Defies Haters To Become All-Time Streaming Smash

In the eight years since its release, Bird Box has no doubt divided viewers. The film holds a 64% rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, and an audience score of just 58%. While some called it “an effective survival thriller,” others thought it could have been better “if they actually explained what was being seen.” To each their own, right?

Regardless, Bird Box has defied its critics to become one of Netflix’s biggest original movies overall, and its most-watched horror thriller in the streaming giant’s storied history. It currently sits in sixth place on Netflix’s Top 10 Most Popular Movies, and, with 157,400,000 views, is the most-watched horror movie on the list. To break it down even further, viewers have spent an astounding 325,300,000 hours watching the film. The only other horror thriller populating the list is Leave the World Behind, which sits at #8 with 143,400,000 views.

Needless to say, after eight years, it’s obvious that Bird Box is still one of the biggest hits in Netflix history, and it seems like it will stay that way for a while longer. Though there have been a lot of great original horror movies since its release, only one has come close to matching its success, signifying the staying power of Bullock’s excellent thriller.

Release Date

December 13, 2018

Runtime

124 minutes

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