The 10 Most Popular Movies On Netflix (So Far) In 2020

It’s been a wild year on Netflix. With the introduction of the Top 10, we’ve gained never-before-seen insight into the inner-workings of the world’s most popular streaming service. Those lists, which are updated daily, tell us how viral a movie or show has gone on the platform compared to every other piece of content available on the site. So while we’re not receiving hard numbers about the amount of times a movie or show has been watched or downloaded, we can monitor and where content moves on the Top 10 charts and make some determinations.

That led to our Netflix tracking system, which allows us to assign points to movies and shows based on where they move in the daily Top 10 rankings. That system allowed me to rank movies by popularity for the month of July. And now I thought it would be a good idea to look at the entire year and see which movies have performed better than any other.

So, based on the Top 10 information that Netflix provides, here it is: the ten most popular movies (so far) in the year 2020.

10. The Old Guard – 152 points

While June was a rather quiet month for movies on Netflix, July has seen two films already catapult onto the Top 10 list for 2020—the first of which is The Old Guard. The Charlize Theron opened to a six-day streak in the No. 1 position and hasn’t let up since. The movie has spent every single day of its Netflix stint ranking in the top five of all movies. The Old Guard has garnered 152 points of the possible 180 points during those 18 days—pretty incredible.

9. The Lorax – 162 points

The only reason The Lorax—the other July movie to make this 2020 list—ranks ahead of The Old Guard is because the animated film had a three-day head start. Still, The Lorax has performed at an amazingly high level in its first 21 days, ranking in the top two positions on the daily Top 10 nine different times. Plus, in the long term, The Lorax will likely have more success than The Old Guard because animated projects appear to have immense replay value on Netflix. So expect The Lorax to move further and further up the 2020 charts as the year goes on.

8. The Willoughbys – 169 points

The Willoughbys had a short-but-sweet run earlier this year. The animated film saw total of 38 days on the Top 10, but racked up most of its points during its early days in late April. The movie only spent two days in the No. 1 spot, but ranked in second place several times and remained a Top 10 mainstay during the month of May.

7. Angel Has Fallen – 182 points

Angel Has Fallen benefitted from being a 2019 film that many people still had not seen. Powered by Gerard Butler, the action hit only spent three days at No. 1, but managed to rank in the top five during its first 18 days on the Netflix charts. Angel Has Fallen culled together 182 points in just 25 days on the Top 10. That was enough for the Butler film to easily rack up more points than any other movie in April.

6. Extraction – 182 points

Much like The Old Guard—Netflix’s other big action offering this year—Extraction spent its first six days in the No. 1 position on the daily Top 10. The Chris Hemsworth vehicle then had a scattered showing for the rest of its Netflix run, falling out of the top five by its thirteenth day on the streaming platform. That’s a noticeable different from The Old Guard, which has yet to fall out of the top five after 18 days.

5. The Wrong Missy – 187 points

We might not be talking about The Wrong Missy much anymore. But in the year of 2020, only one other movie on Netflix has accomplished what this David Spade film achieved back in May: nine consecutive days in the No. 1 position. The comedy absolutely ruled the fifth month of the year, pulling in 165 points alone in May—the most of any movie that month.

4. Spenser Confidential – 236 points

Honestly, it’s surprising to see this Mark Wahlberg film rank so low. Because no movie has had the kind of year that Spenser Confidential had on Netflix. The action/crime drama spent a mind-boggling 18 consecutive weeks in first place on the daily Top 10. That allowed the film to cull together 236 points in one month—the best of any movie on this list. Spenser Confidential racked up all of those points in just 26 days.

3. 365 Days – 282 points

What a time it’s been for 365 Days. Because the summer’s biggest surprise hit fell in and out of the No. 1 spot so many times, 365 Days spent 12 non-consecutive days in first place. That’s the second-most ever (behind Spenser Confidential). The Polish erotic drama easily owned the month of June with 200 points, and so far is on track to rank in the top ten for July.

2. The Angry Birds Movie 2 – 284 points

When the Top 10 featured launched back in late February, The Angry Birds Movie 2 was the first project to command the charts. The animated hit followed its eight-day streak at No. 1 with seven days in second place. The movie didn’t fall out of the top five until 20 days into its run, and would go on to accrue 218 points in the month of March.

1. Despicable Me – 377 points

No surprise here. Ever since Despicable Me’s Netflix premiere on April 16, the animated juggernaut has rarely fallen off charts. Despicable Me has spent 86 days of its 103-day run on the Top 10. That longevity allowed the movie to rank third in the month of April, second in the month of May and 11th in the month of June. And currently in July, Despicable Me sits in 10th place.