Clooney, Pitt Film ‘Wolfs’ Breaks Records, Becoming Apple TV+’s Most-Watched Movie
Clooney, Pitt Film ‘Wolfs’ Breaks Records, Becoming Apple TV+’s Most-Watched Movie
The new action movie featuring a reunion of George Clooney and Brad Pitt raised week-over-week viewership on Apple TV+ precipitously.
Be careful if you decide to browse Apple TV+ for something new to stream because there are officially a pair of wolves on the loose! Deadline has an exclusive report on the success of the new Apple original movie “Wolfs,” which reunites “Ocean's 11” costars Brad Pitt and George Clooney on screen for the first time since 2012’s “8”. According to the report, “Wolfs” is now the most successful movie premiere in the history of Apple TV+.
Key Details:
- As usual, Apple did not provide many specific numbers to quantify how many viewers have watched “Wolfs.”
- The company did say the film raised viewership by nearly 30% on a week-to-week basis.
- Director Jon Watts has already been secured to produce a sequel for the streamer.
The report from Deadline was a bit light on specific numbers, but that’s standard operating procedure for Apple, which still has not even gone so far as to reveal how many subscribers Apple TV+ has in the first place. However, Apple did share that “Wolfs” has been viewed more than any other movie on Apple TV+, and its premiere helped to boost viewership on the streamer by almost 30% week-over-week. The highest viewership jumps occurred in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Italy, Mexico, Brazil, and Germany.
Apple’s original plan was to release “Wolfs” theatrically all over the U.S., which would seem fitting for a movie with Clooney and Pitt as headliners. Eventually, however, Apple decided to change course, preferring to save on distribution by releasing the film in a limited number of theaters for a short time — likely for awards consideration purposes — before sending it to Apple TV+.
“When George, Brad and [director Jon Watts] approached us with the idea for Wolfs, it was an easy call — a crackling, fun movie starring two Oscar winners who everyone knows are iconic together,” Apple’s head of features Matt Dentler said. “Now, audiences have chosen in droves to make ‘Wolfs’ part of their weekend, making the movie a global blockbuster. We always consider Apple TV+ to be the home for the world’s most talented artists to create and deliver their best work, and it’s exciting to see audiences embrace that so overwhelmingly.”
The lack of concrete details on how many views “Wolfs” garnered over the weekend leaves room to question just how high of a bar it had to clear to become the most-viewed movie on Apple TV+. Apple has touted its successes in this way before; in 2023, its popcorn flick “Ghosted” starring Chris Evans and Ana de Armas also broke records for Apple TV+ premieres, though then as now the company declined to say specifically how many viewers had watched.
“Wolfs” already has a sequel on the way, as writer and director Jon Watts was under contract to produce a follow-up film even before the first premiered. The film only has an audience score of 51% on Rotten Tomatoes, but Apple has clearly seen enough to announce it as a triumph in its usual, reserved fashion.
Apple TV
Apple TV (formerly known as Apple TV+) is a subscription video streaming service for $14.99 per month, offering a growing slate of original series, films, documentaries, and specials. Unlike other platforms that combine licensed titles with originals, Apple TV is built entirely around exclusive programming, making it the home of critically acclaimed hits such as “Ted Lasso,” “Severance,” “The Morning Show,” and “Silo.” Its lineup continues to expand with award-winning dramas, comedies, family-friendly shows, and blockbuster original films like “CODA,” which won the Academy Award for Best Picture.