Here Are the 10 Most-Watched Movies of 2026 So Far
Netflix’s first-half viewing data for 2026 has revealed a striking list of the platform’s biggest movie hits. Between January and June, Netflix recorded 97 billion hours of viewing, with action films, crime thrillers, romance, animation and true crime all finding enormous audiences.
The ranking is based on views recorded on Netflix during the first half of 2026, rather than theatrical box-office earnings. One unusual entry is KPop Demon Hunters, which was released in 2025 but remained one of Netflix’s biggest-viewed films during the period.
10. Office Romance — 58.4 million views
Jennifer Lopez and Brett Goldstein lead this romantic comedy about two ambitious professionals whose workplace rivalry gradually turns into a complicated romance. The film also reunited Lopez with her Selena co-star Edward James Olmos. It accumulated 58.4 million views in the first half of the year.
9. Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man — 63.9 million views
Cillian Murphy’s return as Tommy Shelby gave the Peaky Blinders universe another major streaming success. The film follows Tommy as he emerges from exile while his family faces a new threat involving his son Duke and a Nazi conspiracy. It generated 63.9 million views.
8. The Crash — 65.2 million views
The true-crime documentary examines a fatal 2022 car crash in Strongsville, Ohio, which initially appeared to be an accident but became the subject of a criminal investigation. The documentary attracted 65.2 million views, demonstrating the continuing strength of Netflix’s real-life crime programming.
7. People We Meet on Vacation — 77.7 million views
Emily Bader and Tom Blyth star in this adaptation of Emily Henry’s bestselling romance novel. The story follows two longtime friends who have spent years taking an annual vacation together and eventually begin questioning whether their relationship could become something more. The film reached 77.7 million views.
6. Thrash — 100 million views
A Category 5 hurricane, a devastated coastal town and a swarm of sharks provide the ingredients for this survival thriller starring Phoebe Dynevor, Djimon Hounsou and Whitney Peak. The film became the first on the list to cross the 100-million-view mark.
5. Apex — 129 million views
Charlize Theron stars as Sasha, a woman seeking solitude in the Australian wilderness who instead becomes the target of a deadly hunt. Taron Egerton plays the ruthless hunter pursuing her. The action thriller recorded an enormous 129 million views.
4. KPop Demon Hunters — 130.4 million views
The animated musical became a global phenomenon. It follows HUNTR/X, a K-pop girl group whose members secretly battle demons while performing for their devoted fans. With its music becoming a major part of its appeal, the film accumulated 130.4 million views in the first half of 2026.
Interestingly, KPop Demon Hunters is officially a 2025 release, meaning Netflix’s first-half 2026 list isn’t strictly limited to films originally released during 2026.
3. Swapped — 130.8 million views
The animated family adventure narrowly surpassed KPop Demon Hunters. It follows Ollie, a woodland creature, and Ivy, a bird, after a magical accident causes them to switch species. The unlikely pair must work together to save the wilderness they inhabit. The movie registered 130.8 million views.
2. The Rip — 136.1 million views
Matt Damon and Ben Affleck reunited for this crime thriller, playing leaders of a Miami Tactical Narcotics Team who discover $24 million in cash inside a safe house. As word spreads about the money, the officers find themselves fighting both external threats and mistrust within their own team. The film reached 136.1 million views.
1. War Machine — 146.9 million views
The biggest Netflix movie of the first half of 2026 was War Machine, starring Alan Ritchson. The military science-fiction thriller follows a combat engineer entering the US Army Ranger selection process, only for the candidates to encounter a gigantic and mysterious killing machine.
The film generated an astonishing 146.9 million views, putting it at No. 1 ahead of The Rip, Swapped and KPop Demon Hunters. Netflix has already confirmed that a sequel is coming.
The numbers reveal an interesting pattern in Netflix’s 2026 audience. Action and high-concept thrillers dominate the upper half of the ranking, while romance and comedy remain important but occupy the lower positions.
The success of War Machine and The Rip is particularly notable because both films are built around major Hollywood stars but were released directly through Netflix rather than depending on conventional theatrical box-office performance.
Meanwhile, Swapped and KPop Demon Hunters demonstrate the extraordinary global reach of animated entertainment. Their viewership is comparable to—and in this ranking actually exceeds—several major live-action productions.
Netflix’s figures also show how dramatically the streaming landscape differs from the theatrical box office. A movie’s success on Netflix is measured primarily through views, allowing films to accumulate enormous audiences after release without the traditional limitations of cinema screens, ticket prices and theatrical windows.
And the race is far from over. The Netflix figures cover only January through June 2026. Major releases arriving during the second half of the year could still dramatically reshape the annual ranking.
For now, however, War Machine sits at the top with 146.9 million views, making it Netflix’s most-watched movie of 2026 so far. The Rip follows closely at 136.1 million, while Swapped and KPop Demon Hunters have both crossed 130 million.
