A new buddy action comedy starring Matt Damon and Casey Affleck is more popular than any film on streaming, according to a rating analysis firm. And The Instigators is more popular than any streaming series, too.
Meanwhile, three Apple TV+ series pull in plenty of viewers too, including the newly launched Bad Monkey.
The Instigators steals the top spot for Apple TV+
Buddy movies are a staple of film. An older generation should remember Bing Crosby and Bob Hope teaming up multiple times, and the 1980s brought us Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy doing the same. Chris Farley and David Spade made a great team in the 1990s, and more recently there’s Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe. And many more, or course.
Matt Damon and Casey Affleck are the latest pair to make a hit comedy together. The Instigators has the two playing thieves stealing from a corrupt politician … and everything possible going wrong.
The series premiered on Apple TV+ August 9 and became an immediate success: it’s at No. 1 on Reelgood’s list of Top 10 TV films on streaming during the week ending August 15. And the same ratings service says the film is getting more viewers than any TV show, too.
JustWatch, a rival ratings service, says the film isn’t doing quite that well. It puts the movie at No. 3 on its list of top streaming shows for the week ending August 11.
Photo: JustWatch/Reelgood
Estimates from companies like JustWatch and Reelgood are necessary because streaming services rarely reveal how many people tune in to their offerings.
Want to know more? Apple’s description of the movie says:
Rory (Damon) and Cobby (Affleck) are reluctant partners: a desperate father and an ex-con thrown together to rob a corrupt politician’s ill-gained earnings. But when the heist goes wrong, the two find themselves engulfed in a whirlwind of chaos, pursued not only by police but also backward bureaucrats and vengeful crime bosses. Completely out of their depth, they convince Rory’s therapist (Hong Chau) to join their riotous getaway through the city, where they must put aside their differences and work together to evade capture — or worse. The Instigators also stars Michael Stuhlbarg, Paul Walter Hauser, Ving Rhames, Alfred Molina and Toby Jones, with Jack Harlow and Ron Perlman.
The Cult of Mac review says, “The Instigators is an unpretentious buddy film that doesn’t take itself too seriously.” And while some critics of the film haven’t been kind, our reviewer said, “The critics who panned the movie apparently don’t know how to sit back and enjoy a fun flick.”
The Instigators is ready to watch now on Apple TV+.
Don’t overlook Presumed Innocent, Bad Monkey and Time Bandits
Presumed Innocent‘s season finale came in July but the crime drama keeps pulling in viewers. Real staying power made it popular every week since its debut in mid-June. Most recently, it sat at No. 3 on ReelGood’s list of most popular Top 10 TV shows on streaming.
All eight episodes of Presumed Innocent season one are available now.
Chart: JustWatch/Reelgood
And this is not Apple TV+’s only recent success, according to Reelgood. Bad Monkey starring Vince Vaughn premiered only a few days ago, but the action comedy nevertheless made it to No. 6 on the ratings service’s list of most watched shows last week.
The first two episodes of Bad Monkey can be watched now, and the third appears on Wednesday. New episodes air on successive Wednesdays through October 9.
And the hits keep coming. The streaming service turned the 1981 cult classic movie Time Bandits into a comedic adventure series for all ages starring Lisa Kudrow, and it was at No. 7 on Reelgood’s list of popular shows last week.
All 10 episodes of Time Bandits premiered July 24 on Apple TV+ at once. No waiting — they’re all ready to binge-watch now.
Watch these and more on Apple TV+
Watching The Instigators, Presumed Innocent, Time Bandits, Bad Monkey plus many other series or films comes with a subscription to Apple TV+. The service is $9.99 per month with a seven-day free trial. You can also get it via any tier of the Apple One subscription bundle.
And Apple’s streaming video service also includes much more, of course. There’s a library of drama, comedies, musicals, children’s shows, nature documentaries, etc.