If you’re wondering what folks are watching right now during the holidays, Netflix has a massive hit with Carry-On, a fun action-thriller starring Jason Bateman and Taron Egerton. It became the biggest film debut of the year for the streamer. Honestly, it’s the perfect kind of flick for Netflix: not dumb, but not too heavy. A great thriller that doesn’t necessarily need to be seen on the big screen.
For all the criticism Netflix gets for its algorithm-driven programming, Carry-On delivered solid entertainment. So did the week’s top series, Black Doves, a spy thriller starring Keira Knightley and Ben Whishaw. It’s easily one of the streamer’s best shows of 2024. I was impressed and hope it performs well enough over the holidays to earn a second season.
One show that won’t need to fight for another season is Paramount’s Yellowstone, basically the last major cable series—maybe ever. It drew 11.4 million overnight viewers with its Sunday night finale, the biggest audience in the show’s history. By Monday morning, I imagine there were plenty of new cord-cutters with no reason to keep their cable boxes. Now that Yellowstone is over, the highest-rated cable programs (outside of sports) are Fox News shows. How horribly depressing.
Speaking of depressing, Red One—which already had a month-long theatrical run—just became the biggest film premiere ever on Prime Video, hitting over 50 million viewers. Meanwhile, Carry-On brought in 42 million viewers. Of course, both figures are self-reported, so who really knows. The takeaway? People weren’t eager to pay for The Rock and Chris Evans saving Jacked Santa ($93 million domestic box office), but they didn’t mind streaming it for free. Honestly, that’s about all it was worth.
Elsewhere, broadcast network television has seen a resurgence, though much of that viewership happens on streaming platforms rather than linear TV. Matlock is the biggest new series of the year, second overall to Tracker. ABC’s High Potential is close behind, while NBC’s St. Denis Medical and Doctor Odyssey have also been strong performers.
On the streaming side, Taylor Sheridan’s other show, Landman, is currently the top hit, according to SAMBA TV. SAMBA also ranked this year’s most-watched Christmas movies, with the top five being National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, Elf, Home Alone, Four Christmases, and The Holiday. I still can’t believe Four Christmases is popular. My original review of it from our Scathing Reviews, Bitchy People days is unpublished (because I don’t want to get canceled), but here’s one of the kinder lines, directed at Santa Claus:
I want to stick tiny explosives in your Santa pants, yank your beard off, and feed it to your ass. You’re a disappointment. A huge goddamn Christmas failure.
I was such a petty little ass back in the day. That said, it doesn’t matter how bad a movie is, if it’s Christmas-themed, people will watch.