Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail assembled an impressive cast for his thriller Leave the World Behind that included Julia Roberts (Homecoming), Ethan Hawke (The Black Phone), and Mahershala Ali (True Detective) – but he also delivered a divisive movie that earned reactions that ranged from “wildly riveting and entertaining” and “absolutely amazing” to “hideously bad” and “absolutely awful”. JoBlo’s own Chris Bumbray gave the film a 5/10 review that you can read at THIS LINK. I would have scored it higher, I was just left wanting a little more from the ending. Despite the wildly varying reactions, the movie has proven to be quite popular on the Netflix streaming service – in fact, the view count over its first couple months of release has landed it on Netflix’s Top 10 Most Popular Movies list!
Leave the World Behind lands at #8 on the list, ranking above Glass Onion and Extraction. Here’s the line-up:
1 Red Notice – Hours Viewed: 454,200,000 Runtime: 1:58 Views: 230,900,000
2 Don’t Look Up – Hours Viewed: 408,600,000 Runtime: 2:23 Views: 171,400,000
3 The Adam Project – Hours Viewed: 281,000,000 Runtime: 1:47 Views: 157,600,000
4 Bird Box – Hours Viewed: 325,300,000 Runtime: 2:04 Views: 157,400,000
5 The Gray Man – Hours Viewed: 299,500,000 Runtime: 2:09 Views: 139,300,000
6 We Can Be Heroes – Hours Viewed: 231,200,000 Runtime: 1:41 Views: 137,300,000
7 The Mother – Hours Viewed: 265,900,000 Runtime: 1:57 Views: 136,400,000
8 Leave the World Behind – Hours Viewed: 322,600,000 Runtime: 2:22 Views: 136,300,000
9 Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery – Hours Viewed: 320,300,000 Runtime: 2:21 Views: 136,300,000
10 Extraction – Hours Viewed: 266,900,000 Runtime: 1:58 Views: 135,700,000
Leave the World Behind is based on a novel by Rumaan Alam. (You can pick up a copy of the novel at THIS LINK.) Written and directed by Esmail, the film adaptation has the following synopsis: A family’s vacation is upended when two strangers arrive at night, seeking refuge from a cyberattack that grows more terrifying by the minute, forcing everyone to come to terms with their places in a collapsing world.
Roberts, Hawke, and Ali are joined in the cast by Farrah Mackenzie (United States of Al), Charlie Evans (Everything’s Gonna Be Okay), and Myha’la Herrold (Industry). Roberts and Hawke play husband and wife, with Mackenzie and Evans as their children. Herrold plays the daughter of Ali’s character. Kevin Bacon (Tremors) is also in the cast.
Roberts produced the film through her Red Om Films banner, with Esmail and Chad Hamilton producing through Esmail Corp. Red Om’s Lisa Gillan and Marisa Yeres Gill are also producers, with Alam serving as executive producer.
Have you watched Leave the World Behind? What do you think of the movie becoming one of the 10 most popular Netflix movies? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.