‘War Machine’ Just Became Netflix’s Biggest Movie of the Year, and the Rest of the List Might Surprise You

Netflix has made a habit of turning its viewership data into a full-blown cultural event, and every six months, the streamer’s engagement report gives fans and industry watchers alike a fresh scoreboard to argue over. With the platform recently confirming it will shift to an annual reporting schedule starting in 2027, this latest release carries a bit of extra weight as one of the final biannual snapshots audiences will get.

The first half of 2026 has already delivered a packed slate of originals across genres, from military science fiction to animated adventures to cozy rom-coms. Netflix reported more than 97 billion hours watched across its entire catalogue between January and June, marking the highest total the company has recorded for any six-month stretch to date.

At the very top of that mountain of viewing sits ‘War Machine‘, the Alan Ritchson-led sci-fi action thriller that has officially become Netflix’s most-watched film for the first half of the year with 147 million views. Directed by Patrick Hughes, the film follows an elite Army Rangers training unit whose final selection mission spirals into a fight against an unexpected, otherworldly threat, and it has clearly resonated with audiences well beyond its initial release window back in March.

Right behind it sits ‘The Rip’, the Ben Affleck and Matt Damon crime thriller that racked up 136 million views of its own, followed closely by the animated hit ‘Swapped’ with 131 million views. That third-place finish is a particularly strong showing, since Netflix has noted that ‘Swapped’ is on track to become the platform’s second most-watched original animated film ever, trailing only one very familiar name.

That familiar name is ‘KPop Demon Hunters’, which landed at fourth place on this half-year list with 130 million views despite having premiered more than a year earlier. Rounding out the top six are the survival thriller ‘Apex’ with 129 million views and ‘Thrash’ with 100 million views, giving the action and thriller genres a clear stronghold over the upper half of the chart.

The back half of the top ten tells a slightly different story, one built more around heart than adrenaline. The book-to-screen adaptation ‘People We Meet on Vacation’ pulled in 78 million views, followed by ‘The Crash’ with 65 million and the gangster drama spinoff ‘Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man’ with 64 million. Closing out the list is the rom-com ‘Office Romance’ with 58 million views, proof that Netflix’s lighter fare still has plenty of pull even in a half year dominated by big budget action spectacle.

What stands out most about this particular ranking is just how competitive the field has become. Unlike previous reporting periods, where a single title tended to run away with the numbers, six different movies crossed the 100 million view threshold in this six-month window alone, a level of parity Netflix has highlighted as a sign of how deep its current content slate really runs.

For ‘War Machine’ specifically, the win caps off a steady climb rather than an overnight explosion, having overtaken ‘The Rip’ for the top spot only a few weeks after both films debuted. With Ritchson continuing to build a reputation as one of Netflix’s most reliable action leads following prior hits, this latest milestone only strengthens his standing on the platform.

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