Funniest, most boring, longest, most successful, and so on. Netflix‘s movie and series catalog has a winner for whichever category someone could think of, but one of the most intriguing categories is which movie is the most-watched one of the year. In 2024, the title of the most watched movie on Netflix went to the dark fantasy film Damsel.
Directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo and written by Dan Mazeau, Damsel stars noteworthy names such as House of Cards star Robin Wright and Black Panther talent Angela Bassett. However, standing out the most is Millie Bobby Brown, who steps into the role of the main character, Elodie. Millie Bobby Brown taking on the lead certainly played a major role in why Damsel received its impressive title, even though the movie isn’t deserving of the title. So, let’s unpack it.
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Release Date
March 8, 2024
Elodie Meets a Terrible Fate in ‘Damsel’
Damsel tells the story of a young woman called Elodie (Millie Bobby Brown), whose life is about to drastically change. Upon receiving a proposal by Queen Isabelle of Aurea to become the wife of her son, Elodie accepts and embarks on the journey to meet her future husband, Prince Henry. While it is her intention to use her new status in order to save her own people from poverty, she does indeed develop feelings for the handsome prince.
All the way up to her wedding ceremony, an ancient ritual on the top of a mountain, Elodie’s future seemed perfect and secure, if it wasn’t for an ancient debt the royal family had to pay. The very first King of Aurea led an attack to kill a dragon living deep inside the mountains, but instead they murdered the dragon’s three hatchlings. Killing all the soldiers but sparing the King, the dragon doomed the King by having to sacrifice three daughters if he wants to live, and the debt exceeds over generations. Hence, just as Elodie and Henry are tied in marriage, Elodie is pushed down the abyss and left to fight for her life in a dragon’s cave deep inside a mountain, just like numerous girls have before her. Survival is quite literally impossible.
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‘Damsel’ Is Netflix’s Most Watched Movie
There is no denying that Millie Bobby Brown’s Damsel saw immense success upon its release at the beginning of 2024. Once it was available to stream on Netflix, fans of Millie Bobby Brown seemed to have gathered and became avid watchers of the fantasy movie. In the first three days after Damsel’s release, it garnered an incredible amount of 35.5 million views and reached first place in 79 countries. Ever since its release in March 2024, the dark fantasy movie has been watched around 144 million times, which is simply astonishing.
With such a huge number, it is no surprise that Damsel might get a sequel. As the most-watched Netflix movie, it is safe to say that outstanding reviews should be attached to the movie. However, rather the opposite is the case. With a 56% critic score and 59% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, the results are slightly disappointing and frankly surprising. At first glance, the predominantly negative reviews on the one hand, and the title as the most-watched Netflix movie on the other seem contradicting, but there is a reason. MBB.
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Netflix’s ‘Damsel’ Was Actually a Disappointment
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Millie Bobby Brown. Damsel is the biggest Netflix movie of 2024, but let’s be honest, it isn’t deserving of this title. The biggest highlight, which was certainly also why the movie wrapped so many people around its fingers and became the most watched Netflix movie, is that Gen-Z icon, Millie Bobby Brown, is at the center of it. Well, come to think of it, she is even the only proper face viewers really get to see, and she screams a lot. It even feels more than in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre or even Scream. Let that sink in. But enough about high-pitched screams, because it clearly is Millie Bobby Brown’s standing within the Netflix world which has influenced the movie’s success.
As the major star of arguably the most iconic horror fantasy series, Stranger Things, Brown started a massive career after the show’s incredible success. She always has and will always remind the audience of Eleven, the main character of the series, no matter in which project she appears, but since her acting in the series is outstanding, the expectations are accordingly high. Stranger Things fans are constantly craving to see her in other projects while they are waiting for the new season’s release, and it clearly doesn’t matter how good (or bad) of a show or movie it is.
Damsel, in this case, really is bad, and one look behind the front of Millie Bobby Brown is enough to realize that. The story in this wannabe fantasy movie is shallow and painfully predictable, turning literally all of Elodie’s heartfelt or empowering speeches into forgetful moments and ruining the ending of Damsel. Even Brown’s acting is clearly not up to par and feels, more often than not, exaggerated and ridiculously forced. It is her presence that draws people in, but as for Damsel, her performance in itself wouldn’t keep anyone watching.
Unfortunately, it’s not done with the flat storyline and missing acting skills. In some cases, an empty plot can be saved, a lack of profound performances forgiven, at least to some extent, if the fantasy movie stands out with truly impressive CGI, but guess what? Damsel doesn’t even have that. Fundamentally, Damsel offers nothing but action-packed moments, which aren’t even the least bit captivating. While the audience forces itself through the rocky watching experience, most likely due to their love for MBB, the views are growing, even though the quality is missing. Damsel is available to stream on Netflix.
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