We’re more than three-quarters of the way through 2024 and over the last 40 weeks, there have been exactly 25 Netflix movies that have earned the prestigious title of global No. 1 (per Netflix’s own tracking charts). That’s 25 movies that have managed to earn the interest and viewing hours of hundreds of millions of subscribers.
Naturally, you might assume that any movie that ranks in the Netflix No. 1 spot is worth watching, but unfortunately, over the past 10 months, a heck of a lot of stinkers have managed to reach the summit of the streaming service’s most-watched list. Seriously bad movies like “Mea Culpa”, “Rebel Moon - Part Two: The Scargiver," “Atlas," “Mother of the Bride” and “Incoming” all claimed the top rank and none of them deserve to be on your Netflix watchlist.
However, among the many terrible flicks that have managed this achievement in 2024 (so far), there have been five movies that you shouldn’t miss. This handful of films is worth streaming right now if you missed them earlier in the year. So, here are the Netflix No. 1 movies in 2024 (to date) that are actually worth watching.
Best Netflix No.1 movies in 2024 (so far)
‘The Equalizer 3’
2014 was a fantastic year for action fans. Not only did it see the start of the “John Wick” franchise, but “The Equalizer” also began his crusade against criminals that same year. Starring Denzel Washington, “The Equalizer 3” is the latest (and reportedly final) entry in the action-thriller trilogy, and it goes out with a bang. It's packed with adrenaline-spiking stunts and gleefully cathartic violence. If you didn’t already think Washington was one of the coolest men on the planet, go watch “The Equalizer 3” and you’ll be convinced.
The second sequel to the 2014 original, once again sees Washington return as Robert McCall, a former Marine and government assassin, who now protects those in society unable to defend themselves. Having moved to southern Italy to escape his past actions, McCall’s sun-soaked retirement is shortlived when he’s forced back into the field to save his new friends from a local mafia boss, who might just be McCall’s most ruthless foe to date.
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‘The Greatest Night in Pop’
Before watching “The Greatest Night in Pop,” I’ll admit that I’d never heard the song “We Are the World” — in my defense, it was released a whole decade before I was born — but after watching this feel-good Netflix documentary, I had a newfound appreciation for the talented artists who brought this toe-tapping pop jam to life. And even if you don’t consider yourself a pop music fan, you’ll still come away from this musical documentary feeling all fuzzy inside.
Chronicling the “creative chaos of cramming 40-plus celebrities into a single recording studio," this documentary recounts the writing and recording process of the aforementioned 1985 charity single released. Written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie (and inspired by holiday classic “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” by British supergroup Band Aid), the tune features Bob Dylan, Diana Ross, Cyndi Lauper, Stevie Wonder, and Kenny Rogers, and loads more iconic music stars. If you don't care about the song, this documentary is a must-watch for the cameos alone.
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‘What Jennifer Did’
It’s an indisputable fact that Netflix subscribers love true crime. As I’m writing this article, the No. 1 movie on Netflix U.S. is a true crime documentary about a prison officer and a man awaiting trial for murder who fall in love and then go on the run together. So, it comes as little surprise that earlier this year one of the streamer’s most talked about true crime offerings managed to claim the global top spot for period, and that movie is the intriguingly titled “What Jennifer Did."
The Jennifer in question is Jennifer Pan, who endured an unthinkable ordeal when she was tied up alongside her parents by home invaders and forced to watch as her mom and dad were murdered. In response, the local community rallied around the young woman, shocked that tragedy had occurred in their little town, but as the authorities investigate, the evidence suggests that Jennifer knows more than she’s letting on. Coming from director Jenny Popplewell (who helmed “American Murder: The Family Next Door”), “What Jennifer Did” doesn’t break new ground for the true crime genre, but there are enough twists to keep aficionados hooked throughout.
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'Hit Man'
Too much hype can be a dangerous thing and ahead of “Hit Man” arriving on Netflix in June, my anticipation levels were getting seriously high. Remarkably, this Richard Linklater movie kicked off the "Summer of Glen Powell" in some style and became not just one of my favorite Netflix movies of 2024, but one of my favorite movies of 2024 full stop. It’s the perfect blend of dark humor, thriller-style twists and a splash of genuinely swoon-worthy romance. I'm not kidding, Powell has so much chemistry with his co-star Adria Arjona that I assumed they had to be dating in real life (they’re not for the record, or at least that’s what they want us to think…)
In “Hit Man”, Powell plays Gary Johnson, a high school teacher who moonlights as a fake assassin-for-hire in a police sting operation. Gary’s role is simple, pretend to be a hitman, wait for the person looking to hire him to implicate themselves and then the police swoop in and make an arrest. Easy. However, this fool-proof plan falls apart when Johnson takes a very dangerous interest in a supposed damsel in distress (Arjona) looking to hire somebody to murder her abusive husband.
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‘Rebel Ridge’
Netflix served up subscribers a real summer of slop this year with original efforts like “The Union," “The Deliverance," “Incoming” and “Uglies managing a pitiful combined Rotten Tomatoes score of just 111% out of a possible 400%! Thankfully, in early September, “Rebel Ridge” arrived on the scene, and this energic action-thriller was just the tonic needed to wipe away the fowl taste of the service’s previously poor original movie offerings. One of the movie’s biggest strengths is that it starts fast, and then doesn’t let the pacing drop for a moment of its two-hour runtime.
The movie opens with Terry Richmond (Aaron Pierre), a former Marine, cycling towards the town of Shelby Springs to post his cousin's bail. Stopped by a pair of crooked cops, the $36,000 in cash that Terry requires to free his family member is unlawfully stolen. Refusing to let this injustice slide, and racing against the clock to save his cousin before he’s set to the state prison where he’ll be murdered for informing on a criminal gang, Terry embarks on a chaotic quest to reclaim what is rightfully this. This brings him into conflict with the town’s chief of police, Sandy Burnee (Don Johnson), and a tense showdown looms on the horizon.
Watch on Netflix now
Every Netflix No. 1 movie in 2024 (so far)
- “The Equalizer 3”
- “Lift”
- “The Greatest Night in Pop”
- “Despicable Me 3”
- “Players”
- “Mea Culpa”
- “Code 8 Part II”
- “Damsel”
- “Irish Wish”
- “Heart of the Hunter”
- “What Jennifer Did”
- “Rebel Moon - Part Two: The Scargiver”
- “Unfrosted”
- “Mother of the Bride”
- “Atlas”
- “Hit Man”
- “Trigger Warning”
- “A Family Affair”
- “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F”
- “Find Me Falling”
- "Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie"
- "The Union"
- "Incoming"
- "Rebel Ridge"
- "Uglies"
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