It was the $118 million sci-fi that nobody went to see in theaters, yet months later Mickey 17 has quietly become one of the most-streamed movies in the world. The Bong Joon-ho black comedy, starring Robert Pattinson and Mark Ruffalo, is finally finding the audience that skipped it on the big screen, and it is doing it on Netflix.
From box-office bomb to streaming hit
Per FlixPatrol, Mickey 17 is the No. 8 most-watched movie worldwide on Netflix. It is charting in markets from Argentina and Brazil to Canada, Peru and Singapore, and it is also a hit on HBO Max, where it holds the No. 2 spot among the most-watched movies in France.
The turnabout is a sharp one. The film grossed about $133 million against a $118 million budget, a result that made it a headline box-office flop for 2025. Based on that budget, Mickey 17 needed $236 million to $295 million to break even, a mark it never came close to reaching.
What Mickey 17 is actually about
Directed by Bong Joon-ho in his first film since Parasite, Mickey 17 adapts Edward Ashton’s 2022 novel Mickey7. It follows Mickey Barnes, an expendable worker cloned again and again to die on dangerous missions for a space colony, until a mix-up leaves two versions of him alive at once.
Robert Pattinson plays the title character and all of his clones, with Naomi Ackie, Steven Yeun, Mark Ruffalo and Toni Collette rounding out the ensemble.
The numbers behind the flop
| Mickey 17 at a glance | Detail |
|---|---|
| Budget | $118 million (reported) |
| Worldwide box office | About $133 million |
| Netflix rank | No. 8 most-watched movie worldwide |
| HBO Max | No. 2 most-watched movie in France |
| Rotten Tomatoes | 77% Certified Fresh |
| Runtime | 147 minutes |
| Where to watch | Netflix (global), HBO Max (US) |
The streaming success is no surprise to the film’s champions. It holds a 77% Certified Fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes from critics and a similar audience score, and it was long tipped as a future cult classic.
Why it is catching on now
Movies that struggle in cinemas often build a loyal second life at home, and Mickey 17 now sits alongside a growing line of Netflix favorites. The streaming giant’s charts have been a reliable launchpad for titles like Call Me Mother, which just hit No. 1 on Netflix Philippines, and The Whisper Man, the Robert De Niro thriller that arrived recently. Mickey 17 could be the next binge for Filipino viewers who skipped its cinema run.
For now, Mickey 17 is available on Netflix worldwide and on HBO Max in the United States, and its climb up the charts suggests the flop label may not stick for long.
