Since its debut in late June, Kpop Demon Hunters has dominated the Netflix streaming charts, quickly becoming the platform’s most-watched movie of all time. It’s been an incredible run for the animated film, which has spent 14 weeks in the top 10, accumulating well over 300 million views over its lifetime. While Kpop Demon Hunters has been the biggest draw on Netflix this year by far, it hasn’t had a stranglehold on the No. 1 position for the entirety of its run. There have been times when Kpop Demon Hunters has fallen to second place, and that’s what happened this past week as a new rom-com made waves.
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Netflix shared its official top 10 movies chart for the week of September 15th-21st. In first is The Wrong Paris, which premiered on September 12th. For the week of September 8th-14th, The Wrong Paris came in second place, but it rose to the top spot this past week with 21.8 million views, narrowly edging out the 21.2 million views Kpop Demon Hunters posted in the same timeframe.
The Wrong Paris Overtaking Kpop Demon Hunters Isn’t a Surprise
The Wrong Paris stars Miranda Cosgrove as Dawn, who auditions for a reality dating show so she can earn the money to pay for art school expenses. She believes the forthcoming season is set in Paris, France (where her art school is located), but is disappointed to find out the action takes place in Paris, Texas. The bachelor at the heart of the competition is cowboy Trey McAllen (Pierson Fodé), who Dawn, of course, starts to develop feelings for. The Wrong Paris earned generally positive yet mixed reviews (67% on Rotten Tomatoes), some might find it surprising to see it overtake a sensation like Kpop Demon Hunters, but it isn’t really a shock.
As the theatrical landscape has changed and mid-budget films become harder sells on the big screen, Netflix has emerged as a haven for rom-coms. Several of the streamer’s works in this genre have soared to the top of the charts, including Players, Hot Frosty, and To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before (which spawned a hit franchise for Netflix). Fans of romantic comedies know Netflix is the place to go for new titles. Back in August, the dramedy My Oxford Year surpassed Kpop Demon Hunters, so the animated film has been swapping places with Netflix’s romance movies at various points throughout its run.
What will be interesting to see is how long The Wrong Paris stays atop of Kpop Demon Hunters. My Oxford Year was the No. 1 film on Netflix for just one week, and it was in the top 10 for only four. By the week of August 25th-31st, it was out of the top 10 entirely (falling all the way down from fourth place the week before). While Kpop Demon Hunters has had incredibly prolonged staying power, other Netflix movies this year seem to have a spike in popularity before falling off. That’s not unusual; the new title on the block is a sizable draw for a short period of time and then people move on to the next new thing.
The performance of Netflix’s other original movies this year puts Kpop Demon Hunters‘ run in perspective. It’s wildly exceeded all expectations, serving as the launchpad for a new franchise (a sequel is already in development). Since its premiere, Kpop Demon Hunters hasn’t fallen below second place on the top 10 charts. There will likely be other movies that surpass it on any given week, but at the rate it’s going, Kpop Demon Hunters will still be in the top 10 long after The Wrong Paris has had its moment in the sun.
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Courtesy of Crunchyroll
