Did More People Really Watch Adam Sandler's New Netflix Movie Than The 'Game Of Thrones' Finale?
To many, Adam Sandler is a bottomless mystery. Who is Adam Sandler? What is an Adam Sandler fan? Where do they all live? Do they like anything except Adam Sandler? Is it possible they've only ever seen Adam Sandler films? Who, in 2019, sees an Adam Sandler trailer and decides that they will spend two of the precious hours they have left before the Earth becomes a barren husk in his company? And so on.
We do at least have some hard stats to work with now on that last question. Netflix Comedy's Twitter account shared the fact that 30,869,863 accounts in North America watched Sandler's newest effort, Murder Mystery, on its three-day opening weekend. 'Watched' in this instance means 'got more than 70 per cent of the way through'.
🚨ADAM SANDLER AND JENNIFER ANISTON BREAKING NEWS ALERT🚨
30,869,863 accounts watched Murder Mystery in its first 3 days - the biggest opening weekend ever for a Netflix Film. 13,374,914 accounts in the US and Canada, and 17,494,949 more worldwide.- Netflix Is A Joke (@NetflixIsAJoke) June 18, 2019
Netflix is usually - and famously - guarded over its viewing figures and only really releases them as a means of either validating its investment in original programming or making pointed ripostes to criticisms of some of its choices.
Using the MPAA estimate of a $9 ticket, Netflix is claiming a $120 million domestic opening weekend , theoretically the third biggest opening of the year behind the two Marvel movies.
HBO claimed 19.3 million viewers for the Game of Thrones finale. https://t.co/i2m19xubRz- Peter Labuza (@labuzamovies) June 18, 2019
This seems to fit into the second category. Not many people were quite sure why Adam Sandler, who hadn't made a critically respected film since Funny People in 2009, instead farting out nonsense like Pixels, The Ridiculous Six and Jack and Jill, had been handed a four-film deal in 2015. Fewer still understood the further four-film deal he was given in 2017.
But this, in a way, it answers those critics as well as all those questions at the top of the article. Adam Sandler is a comedy titan with legions of (casual) fans. They live in America and Canada. They don't like anything except Adam Sandler, and burn votive incense around a framed portrait of him every evening. There are no films without Adam Sandler in. Nearly 10 per cent of the population of America and Canada wanted to spend two of their dwindling hours with him. Mysteries solved.
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