'The Life List' #1 at Netflix as Lifeless 'The Electric State' Fizzles; 'Last Breath' Still VOD #1
Netflix audiences go where their gut takes them. Their $320 million original “The Electric State” from the Russo brother is barely on its top 10 movie chart just over two weeks after release. It remains to be seen what staying power “The Life List” has, but it debuted at #1 over the weekend. It shouldn’t take a lot ahead to at least in the U.S. get more viewers than their Chris Pine/Milly Bobby Brown starrer.
Focus’ low-budget/modest grossing underwater thriller “Last Breath” remained #1 at both iTunes and Fandango’s top viewed movie charts in a week with few new offerings. Most noteable otherwise was a surge for Mel Gibson’s “Flight Risk,” #2 at iTunes (which ranks by transactions), and at #5 at Fandango (which calculates by revenue), the highest list film not renting for $19.99 (it is now available for $9.99).
“The Life List” is an adaptation of Lori Nelson Spielman’s 2013 best seller about a meandering 30-something Brooklyn resident forced by her mother’s will to complete a set of goals she had compiled as a young teen. Starring Sophia Carson, former child actress who has become a Netflix original favorite (“Purple Hearts,” “Carry-On”) and directed by long-time romcom writer and occasional director Adam Brooks, this appears to have the draw of a Lifetime or Hallmark feature film.
We don’t have a clue as to its costs, but it conceivably was one-tenth or less of “Electric.” That latter got far more attention, and grabbed eyes worldwide (we’ll know tomorrow if it still is # worldwide for the week; “Den of Thieves 2: Pantera” is #2 in the U.S. but not streaming on the site elsewhere). But if Netflix could make 10 “Life Lists” instead of one “Electric State,” it would seem to be a better value, at least in terms of audience interest.
The U.S. top 10 includes four originals. New this week is the British documentary “Con Mum” about a British chef’s unsettling search for his biological mother (currently #5). Apart from “Electric,” “The Twister,” another documentary, remains on the list at #7. “Despicable Me 4” continued strong all week, currently #3.
It is very rare for a lower-grossing film like “Last Breath” ($21 million U.S./Canada) to lead VOD charts for two weeks. The lack of competition - no other major releases the last two weeks, with “Paddington in Peru” (out tomorrow) and “Mickey 17” (apparently set for next week) having longer windows than the 18 days Focus’ film had. Still, even without knowing the actual revenues it reinforces why studios aren’t likely to adjust release strategies for initial home viewing.
“Breath” is still $19.99. “Flight Risk” is part of a recent trend of renting for an intermediate $9.99 before the lower $5.99 price. It too is overperforming versus theatrical results ($29 million). It now is placing higher on iTunes than it did when it was $19.99, and its #5 spot on Fandango, behind four titles twice the price, reinforces that it has found an audience.
Two new releases did reach at least one top 10. Dito Montiel’s comedy “Riff Raff” ($9.99) with Bill Murray and Jennifer Coolidge made both, while “The Cleaner” (Quiver), a British hostage thriller with Daisy Ripley from one time James Bond director Martin Campbell (“Casino Royale”) is #3 at Fandango, helped by its $19.99 rental fee.
An unexplained oddity is that “The Whole Nine Yards,” a $3.99 rental, briefly rose to #3 during the week at iTunes. Maybe audiences are sending a message about wanting fresh films.
Top 10s
iTunes ranks films daily by number of transactions, while Fandango at Home lists by revenue. The listings below are for Monday, March 31 (iTunes) and the week of March 24-30 (Fandango), followed by their ranking for the full week.
The distributors listed are current rights owners. Prices for all titles are for lowest for either rental or download.
iTunes (the first number is today’s rank, the second for the whole week based on averaging the daily rankings)
(1) Last Breath (Focus) - $19.99
(6) Flight Risk (Lionsgate) - $9.99
(3) Wicked (Universal) - $5.99
(2) Baby Girl (A24) - $5.99
(4) One of Them Days (Sony) - $5.99
(6) Companion (WB) - $9.99
(-) Dog Man (Universal) - $19.99
(2) The Brutalist (A24) - $9.99
(7) Riff Raff (Roadside Attractions) - $9.99
(-) The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (Lionsgate) - $3.99
(8) The Whole Nine Yards (WB) - $3.99
(10) A Complete Unknown (Searchlight) - $5.99
Fandango at Home (full week)
Last Breath (Focus) - $19.99
Dog Man (Universal) - $19.99
Cleaner (Quiver) - $19.99
Heart Eyes (Sony) - $19.99
Flight Risk (Lionsgate) - $9.99
Mufasa: The Lion King (Disney) - $19.99
The Beekeeper (Amazon MGM) - $3.99
Wicked (Universal) - $5.99
Riff Raff (Roadside Attraction) - $9.99
Moana 2 (Disney) - $5.99
Netflix Movies
These are the most-viewed, current rankings on Netflix’s domestic daily chart on March 31. Originals include both Netflix-produced and acquired titles it initially presents in the U.S. Netflix publishes its own worldwide weekly (and individual country) top 10s on Tuesdays based on time viewed, and usually includes films for which it doesn’t have domestic rights. The first number is today’s rank, after that the rank based on the average of each day’s position. The final four are listed by their full week ranking in parentheses.
(6) The Life List (Netflix original)
(1) Den of Thieves 2: Pantera (2025 theatrical release)
(9) Talk to Me (2022 theatrical release)
(2) Despicable Me 4 (2024 theatrical release)
(7) Con Mum (Netflix British documentary original)
(4) Kraven the Hunter (2024 theatrical release)
(3) The Twister: Caught in the Storm (Netflix original documentary)
(5) Trap (2024 theatrical release)
(8) The Electric State (Netflix original)
(10) The Secret Life of Pets (2016theatrical release)
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