Another month, another batch of all-new movies and TV shows across every streaming service in existence has happened. With the start of September last week, most streamers are gearing up for the arrival of October, loading up on horror movies as audiences prepare for the fall season to arrive and the need to watch killers stalk teenagers and ghosts haunt houses. That said, subscribers to HBO Max have gone a different way, making it clear they’re not ready for spooky season just yet, and instead are tuning in for what seems like an all-new thriller and making it a major streaming hit.
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On Friday, September 4, HBO Max became the streaming home for Fuze, a thriller film out of the UK that actually premiered in theaters earlier this year. Featuring a roster of familiar faces that includes Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Theo James, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, and Sam Worthington, Fuze arrived earlier this year to mixed-to-positive reviews and less-than-ideal box office totals. This week has proven, though, that audiences will find a film they like at any point in time, as subscribers have pressed play on the title to a huge degree, rocketing it to the top of the charts and making it the #1 movie on HBO Max this year.
Fuze Becomes HBO Max’s #1 Movie After Bombing at Box Office
At the heart of Fuze is a pretty distinct storyline that is already enough to make it stand out as a compelling narrative for audiences. When the film starts, a construction site in a London suburb comes across a discovery that’s not abnormal: an unexploded bomb buried in the earth, which they assume is leftover from the bombings in World War II, is discovered. While the area is locked down to try to defuse it before it can cause chaos, a team sneaks through the sewers to rob a nearby bank.
What’s so impressive about Fuze suddenly finding the audience it has on HBO Max is two-fold. First, the film premiered on the service just four days ago and wasted no time taking the top spot. Prior to Fuze making its streaming debut, the Bob Odenkirk-starring Normal was the top film, but in just two days, Fuze took the #1 position without ever stopping at any other spot in the Top 10. That marks a huge leap and shows audiences are eager to see new thrillers on the platform.
The second reason it’s so impressive is that the movie’s theatrical debut earlier this year wasn’t exactly something to write home about. A reported budget for the film that has been floating around online (and remains unconfirmed) is that the movie cost some $45 million to produce, a figure that’s quite high for an independent feature. Upon release, Fuze grossed $1.48 million at the domestic box office, with a worldwide total of $5.6 million when accounting for international territories. Suffice to say, if that budget number is accurate, that makes the film a pretty major…pardon the pun, bomb.
For film fans, Fuze becoming the most streamed movie on HBO Max after bombing at the box office is a sign that getting caught up in the semantics of monetary wins is relevant only to the people who sign the checks. Watching and enjoying a movie at any point of its lifetime is a win for the audience, and currently the subscribers to HBO Max are winning.
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