Summary
- The Emoji Movie ranks as the fourth most-watched movie on Netflix globally for the week of August 12 – 15.
- The film has amassed 11.2 million hours viewed and 7.7 million total views despite having earned mostly negative reviews upon its theatrical release in 2017.
- The Emoji Movie may offer little of value to adults, but families with young children can drive success in theaters and on streaming.
The Emoji Movie has become a major hit on Netflix, despite its negative reputation. Directed by Tony Leondis, The Emoji Movie was released in 2017 with a story that follows Gene (T.J. Miller), a multi-expressional emoji, as he embarks on an adventure to become a single-expression emoji. The film was famously lambasted by critics upon its release, and it currently has only a 6% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Now, however, data shared by Netflix reveals that The Emoji Movie is the fourth most-watched movie on the streamer globally for the week of August 12 – 18. The film has racked up an impressive 11.2 million hours viewed and 7.7 million views in total. The Emoji Movie beats titles like Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie (2024), Inside the Mind of a Dog (2024), and Night School (2018), but falls short of movies like Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017), Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014), and The Union (2024).
The Emoji Movie’s Reception & Streaming Success Explained
Why The Animated Film Is Finding Renewed Success
When The Emoji Movie hit theaters, critics took issue with just about every part of it. Despite featuring the voice talents of actors like James Corden, Anna Faris, Maya Rudolph, Patrick Stewart, Jennifer Coolidge, Sofía Vergara, and Christina Aguilera, the movie was criticized for its nonsensical story, lack of humor, and for generally feeling like a cynical studio cash grab. The Emoji Movie, however, did fare somewhat better with general audiences, and it currently sports a 36% audience score (now called the Popcornmeter) on Rotten Tomatoes.
The Emoji Movie was written by Leondis, Eric Siegel, and Mike White. White is best known for creating HBO’s The White Lotus, but he’s also written films like 2024’s Despicable Me 4, 2023’s Migration, 2017’s Pitch Perfect 3, and 2003’s School of Rock.
This more generous audience response is reflected in The Emoji Movie‘s box office performance. Made on an estimated budget of $50 million, the film ended up grossing $217.8 million worldwide, making it an undeniable success. Though there may not be much to entertain adults in The Emoji Movie as it falls short on a basic storytelling level, it’s likely that parents with younger children were a major driver of its success.
Engaging entire families remains a crucial ingredient to success for these types of animated films, both in terms of box office and streaming. As the Despicable Me and Minions movies prove, mixed reviews from critics don’t always matter that much when it comes to animated family fare. Demographic data isn’t provided with Netflix’s top 10 list, but The Emoji Movie could be succeeding because it’s a harmless title that parents can throw on to entertain younger children.
Source: Netflix



