The crime comedy Bad Monkey starring Vince Vaughn quickly became the most popular series on streaming, according to analysts. The Apple TV+ show follows a former detective turned restaurant inspector solving an oddball murder in hopes of getting his old job back.
And it’s not Apple’s only hit. The Instigators continues to pull in viewers, as do two more Apple TV+ series.
Bad Monkey does good
From the start, Bad Monkey brings three strengths. It’s based on best seller, and the series was adapted for Apple TV+ by Bill Lawrence, who created a little show called Ted Lasso … you might have heard of it. Plus the new series stars Vince Vaughn, who’s clearly perfect for this role.
That’s enough to get the show off right. It premiered only a week or so ago, but already ranks No. 1 on Reelgood’s list of Top 10 TV shows on streaming during the week ending August 18. And it also sits at No. 1 on JustWatch‘s list of top streaming shows for the same week.
Chart: JustWatch/Reelgood
Estimates from companies like JustWatch and Reelgood are necessary because streaming services rarely reveal how many people tune in to their offerings.
Critics also think Bad Monkey offers good things. It has a 92% approval rating from the review-aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes.
The Times (UK) reviewer said, “Vaughn has a great vehicle here, and if you miss Bruce Willis on screen, as we all do, there are moments Vaughn is a convincing lookie-likie, only with a bit more hair.” And the Chicago Sun-Times said, “Bad Monkey succeeds in capturing the funny, juicy elements of Carl Hiaasen’s South Florida murder mystery.”
Apple TV+ itself says:
“Based on Carl Hiaasen’s New York Times bestselling novel and enduring cult favorite, Bad Monkey tells the story of Andrew Yancy (Vaughn), who has been bounced from the Miami Police Department and is now a health inspector in the Keys. But after stumbling upon a case that begins with a human arm fished up by tourists, he realizes that if he can prove murder, he’ll be back in. He just needs to get past a trove of Floridian oddballs and one bad monkey.”
The first three episodes of Bad Monkey can be watched now, and the third appears on Wednesday. New episodes air on successive Wednesdays through October 9.
Don’t overlook The Instigators, Presumed Innocent and Time Bandits
The Instigators, a buddy action comedy starring Matt Damon and Casey Affleck, is another Apple TV+ hit. Its two stars play thieves stealing from a corrupt politician … and everything possible going wrong. The movie is at No. 4 on ReelGood’s most recent list of most popular Top 10 TV films on streaming, and at No. 6 on JustWatch’s equivalent list.
The Instigators is ready to watch now on Apple TV+.
Chart: JustWatch/Reelgood
And there are additional Apple TV+ series that qualify as hits. Presumed Innocent‘s season finale came in July but the crime drama just keeps pulling in viewers. Real staying power put it on the ratings charts every week since its debut in mid-June. Most recently, it sat at No. 6 on both ReelGood’s and JustWatch’s lists of most popular Top 10 TV shows on streaming.
All eight episodes of Presumed Innocent season one are available now.
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. 8 on Reelgood’s list of popular shows last week.
Time Bandits premiered July 24 on Apple TV+. Two episodes a week dropped after that, so all eight are now ready to watch.
Watch these and more on Apple TV+
Watching Bad Monkey, The Instigators, Presumed Innocent, Time Bandits, 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.