Anna Daniels
Well before The Irishman was even released, Netflix knew they had a gem on their hands. After all, Martin Scorsese has had a pretty flawless record when it comes to filmmaking in Hollywood. Still, the near four-hour mob movie is getting even more views and acclaim than anyone realized.
Based on Charles Brandt’s book, I Heard You Paint Houses — The Irishman spans several decades. Former truck driver, Frank Sheeran (Robert De Niro) recounts his days and involvement with Russell Bufalino (Joe Pesci) and his Pennsylvania crime family beginning in the 1950s. As he climbs the ranks to become one of the top hitmen in the organization — Frank forms a close friendship with Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino) — a bombastic Teamster tied to organized crime.
However, Frank soon learns that you have to lose everything near to you if you want to reach the top. The Irishman clearly resonated with a ton of film lovers across the globe because Netflix is reporting massive streaming numbers for it.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RS3aHkkfuEI?feature=oembed&w=500&h=281]
‘The Irishman’ is Netflix’s biggest theatrical release of all time
Ahead of The Irishman’s Nov. 27 release on Netflix — the film had a limited theatrical release across the United States beginning Nov. 1. Though the film wasn’t released widely — and it was only shown in theaters in two major cities — The Irishman has already become Netflix’s biggest theatrical release ever.
Though the streaming service has not released box office numbers just yet, we do know that the success of the film within the U.S. (showing in only eight screens in Los Angeles and New York) has prompted international theaters to gobble it up.
The United Kingdom, Italy, Japan, South Korea, and Australia have already put the film in cinemas. However, because of Netflix’s refusal to wait for 90 days between theatrical release and streaming — France, Germany, the Middle East, and China aren’t showing the film in theaters. Thankfully, Netflix is international so anyone with a log-on no matter where they are on earth can watch.
Millions of people have watched ‘The Irishman’ on Netflix
Since the movie has a 209-minute run time, many people loved the convenience of watching the movie from the comfort of their homes. According to Nielsen rating service — The Irishman garnered 13.16 million viewers from Nov. 27-Dec. 1. They also reported that while just over 13 million people completed the entire saga some 17 million people have seen parts of the movie. Half of the audience was age 50 and over.
To compare these numbers to some of Netflix’s other recent releases, you’ll see why the movie stands out. El Camino — the Breaking Bad movie only drew in 8.2 million viewers during its first five days of streaming on the platform. However, 2018’s Bird Box drew in 16.9 million viewers during it’s first five day time period. We think all of those memes had something to do with that.
‘The Irishman’ just changed the game for Netflix
Unlike other revered Hollywood directors — Scorsese has been eager to work with Netflix, which may prompt others to follow in his footsteps. Likewise, the global reach of the movie has paved the way for more massive Netflix movies like this one.
We wonder if this might also change Hollywood’s aversion to streaming especially when it comes to that 90-day wait period.
Written by: Cheat
