Netflix goes nuts for The Ridiculous 6

Spoofs. If ever there’s a genre that can go horribly wrong and receive a critical mauling, this is it. Worse still, they can incur the wrath of the fans as well (Vampires Suck, anyone?), which looked to be the case with Adam Sandler‘s latest offering, The Ridiculous 6. That is, until this week, when it officially became the most-watched film in Netflix history.

After all, his form over the last few years hasn’t really made for spectacular reading, as both Jack and Jill and That’s My Boy illustrated only too well. However, it looks as though the knockers have been proved wrong on this occasion.

To be fair, The Ridiculous 6 didn’t quite escape the afore-mentioned mauling, and there was even the odd negative response from fans, but one thing that’s for sure is that it has racked up record viewing figures through the popular streaming service. Netflix themselves came under scrutiny for signing a four-film deal with Sandler last year due to his previous box-office flops, but he who laughs last, laughs longest.

Netflix’s Chief Content Officer, Ted Sarandos, said: “The Ridiculous 6, by way of example, in the first 30 days of Netflix it’s been the most-watched movie in the history of Netflix. It’s also enjoyed a spot at No.1 in every territory we operate in, and in many of them it’s still No.1.”

Alongside Sandler, the movie’s cast includes Taylor Lautner, Luke Wilson, Nick Nolte, Harvey Keitel (in a break from Direct Line ads), Steve Buscemi and – get this – Vanilla Ice! Is it any wonder viewers have been lapping it up?

Only last month, things were looking grim. A $60m flick that was sinking without a trace, critics were pulling it apart and it was apparently nowhere to be seen under ‘Trending Now’, ‘Popular on Netflix’ or ‘Recently Added’. That’s aside from the flack it was getting due to walk-outs from several Native American extras, who failed to see the funny side of the script.

But it now seems as if they, and the Netflix subscribers who gave The Ridiculous 6 the thumbs-down, were in a minority.