Martin Scorsese’s Netflix epic The Irishman is, by most accounts, a pretty good movie that, despite its monstrous length, should not be watched in bits and pieces. After all, it’s a piece of cinematic art (as opposed to a Marvel Studios roller coaster, according to Scorsese) that’s been nominated for several awards. But what about it’s viewing numbers on the streaming giant’s platform? Because sure, Netflix offered the film a limited release in select theaters across the country, but let’s face it — most people who end up watching it are going to do just that via the streamer itself.
Well, nearly two weeks after the movie’s debut on Netflix’s platform, the latter is now confident enough to reveal that 26.4 million households began watching, and made it at least 70 percent of the way through, Scorsese’s epic in its first week. At least, that what content chief Ted Sarandos said in a call with Variety and others on Tuesday. He also claimed that, within The Irishman‘s first 28 days of streaming, they expect this number to jump up to 40 million subscribers.
These numbers are a bit short — half, to be exact — of previous hits like Bird Box, but this fact didn’t seem to phase Sarandos and company. In fact, it seems team Netflix couldn’t be happier, especially since The Irishman managed to snag several Golden Globe nominations from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association earlier this week. Though, there’s always the caveat that these numbers — and most of the viewing figures Netflix makes public — are nearly impossible to confirm or corroborate via a third party like Nielsen.
(Via Variety)
