Adam Sandler’s New Netflix Movie Breaks Record For Animated Movies

Adam Sandler’s new movie Leo breaks the record for biggest Netflix debut by an animated film. Sandler’s relationship with the streaming giant began back in 2014 when the star signed a four-movie mega-deal. The movies made under that deal have been variable in quality according to critics, but have consistently performed well with audiences. Sandler last re-upped with the streamer in 2020, and it seems the relationship is destined to continue for the foreseeable future.

Sandler’s latest effort for Netflix indeed represents a high-water mark in his relationship with the streamer, as his musical comedy Leo scored 34.6 million views in its first week, the biggest debut ever on the platform for an animated film. The movie clocked in at 61 million hours viewed for the week ending November 26, 2023, according to Netflix’s own reporting.

Leo Continutes An Interesting Adam Sandler Netflix Trend

Not only was Leo a hit with Netflix viewers looking for family-friendly fare to enjoy over the Thanksgiving holiday, it also scored highly with critics, as reflected in its 82% score on Rotten Tomatoes. Sandler’s films for Netflix have not always done so well with reviewers, but a few have surprisingly been embraced by critics as well as audiences, most notably Hustle, The Meyerowitz Stories and in 2023, You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitvah and the massive hit Leo.

The trend reflected in Sandler’s Rotten Tomatoes scores is clear to see: His traditional comedies like The Do-Over, Murder Mystery and Hubie Halloween get lambasted, but the movies in which he diverges from his standard on-screen formula receive praise. Netflix is not paying Sandler millions of dollars to make sports movies like Hustle, or ensemble prestige films like The Meyerowitz Stories, or even animated films like Leo. But it’s important that his output for the streamer includes these departures, as they allow him to stretch himself creatively, and work in genres where different sides of his persona get a chance to shine. In the case of Leo, the departure has resulted in a big win both for Sandler and for the platform where he’s done most of his work in recent years.

Source: Netflix