At Least 17.1 Million People Watched ‘At Least Some Of’ Netflix’s New Film ‘The Irishman’

Early Friday morning, The Hollywood Reporter announced the viewership numbers for Netflix‘s latest mob film, The Irishman. According to the article, at least 17.1 million people watched “at least some of” the Martin Scorsese film during its first weekend on the streaming platform.

That’s an impressive feat, especially with the movie’s sprawling runtime of three and a half hours. As for how many people watched the mob movie in its entirety, The Hollywood Reporter states that it was more than 13 million viewers, according to Nielsen data.

“The ratings service says the 3.5-hour mob epic drew an average audience of 13.16 million viewers from Nov. 27-Dec. 1, with each day averaging between 2.15 million (Sunday, Dec. 1) and 3.14 million viewers (Friday, Nov. 29),” reported The Hollywood Reporter.

The movie was most popular with users over the age of 50, specifically with men between the ages of 50 and 64.

The Irishman stars Al Pacino, Joe Pesci, and Robert de Niro. It revolves around a truck driver named Frank Sheeran (de Niro) who becomes a hitman for the mob. The film is based on the book, I Heard You Paint Houses by Charles Brandt.

It should be noted that Nielsen’s ratings are only able to measure those who watch Netflix on their television sets. It doesn’t quantify those that watch it on their phones, tablets, or computers. Netflix doesn’t typically release its viewing data, so the number of people who watched the film is probably higher than what was reported by Nielsen.

Netflix did give the film a theatrical release in select theaters, but the box office numbers have not yet been shared with the media. The Irishman has received a near-perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes, where it received a Certified Fresh seal of approval and a 96 percent overall rating.

The movie is likely to become a major awards contender during the upcoming season. It was already selected as the best film of the year by the New York Film Critics Circle, reported Variety on December 4.

Praise on social media has been equally magnanimous.

“This film is really something special. Wow,” one person tweeted in response to the Variety article.

Another user raved that the film is an example of “peak cinema.”

#TheIrishman is peak cinema. Perfect acting, cinematography, editing, and score. This is an instant classic mob film. Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Joe Pesci are all at the top of their game. Easily one of the top contenders for the best film of the year

The Irishman is currently available to stream on Netflix.