Robert De Niro’s underrated 2015 comedy-drama The Intern has hit the top of Netflix’s movie chart two days after it arrived on the streaming platform. The film co-stars Anne Hathaway as the high-flying CEO of a fashion start-up reluctant to work with De Niro’s Ben Whittaker, a former executive who’s come out of retirement to intern with her company.
This unconventional buddy comedy about a fish out of water dropped on Netflix on Sunday, June 22, and it took a mere 24 hours to become the streaming giant’s most-watched feature-length release right now in the United States. The Intern’s newfound streaming success comes a decade after it took almost $200 million at the box office globally, despite receiving mixed reviews from critics. It might not be one of Robert De Niro’s most celebrated comedies, but its domination of Netflix’s charts proves that it’s one of the actor’s most beloved films of recent years.
The Intern Starring Robert De Niro Is Now Number 1 On Netflix
De Niro’s 2015 Comedy With Anne Hathaway Tops The Platform’s US Movie Chart For The 1st Time
The Intern has reached the top spot on Netflix’s top 10 movies chart in the US on just its second day streaming on the platform. The 2015 film’s winsome odd-couple pairing of Robert De Niro and Anne Hathaway has proven a hit with a new generation of viewers, 10 years on from its successful theatrical release. This is another in a long line of films to find major streaming success long after its initial release.
Netflix’s release of the comedy-drama film has finally made it available to wider audiences watching at home. The Intern was previously available to watch online via streaming services such as Hulu, where it was never going to get the exposure Netflix has now given it. Now that it’s become accessible to Netflix’s 90 million American subscribers, the movie has taken less than 24 hours to become the platform’s number one feature-length hit in its biggest market.
Our Take On The Intern Dominating Netflix In The US
This Underrated Gem Has Always Been A Hit With Audiences
As with various Nancy Meyers movies, from What Women Want to The Holiday, The Intern has always done well with audiences, regardless of its lukewarm reception from reviewers. There’s a reason it holds a higher rating with audiences than critics on Rotten Tomatoes (73% to 60%). It’s unsurprising that the movie has stormed Netflix’s movie chart, especially given the unlikely, endearing chemistry between De Niro and Hathaway, both of whom are major star attractions in their own right.
The Intern has always been underappreciated by reviewers, and therefore undersold to viewers who might otherwise have watched it previously.
Still, it’s incredible just how quickly The Intern has climbed to the top of the pile of all the movies streaming on the platform in the United States. The scale of this immediate audience response to the film reflects the mᴀss appeal of its premise, as well as the fact that it’s always been underappreciated by reviewers, and therefore undersold to viewers who might otherwise have watched it previously.