19 Highest-Grossing Netflix Originals

The vast collection of original content at Netflix has driven an entire industry transformation by winning recognition from audiences worldwide. The “Netflix Originals” collection has achieved both audience record-breaking success while earning massive financial returns through its heart-stopping dramas and action-packed movies. Netflix Originals has demonstrated 19 highest-grossing titles featuring top-notch casts that deliver brilliant storytelling and broad-based success. The logistics of the highest-grossing movies and web series are based on one month of its release. Most of the databases have been taken from Wikipedia reports. Please note that this entire article is based on the writer's opinion. Reader's discretion is advised.

19. The Kissing Booth 2 (2020)

"The Kissing Booth" is regarded as one of the highest-grossing Netflix original films, mostly because of its broad appeal to a young audience, which is boosted by its adorable ensemble and relatable teen romance plot. The first film maintains a passionate fan base alongside Netflix's brilliant marketing operations making "The Kissing Booth 2" a hit. Moreover, Joey King’s character “Elle Evans” and her romantic adventures were the focus of the sequel. The film appealed to its target group of audience and increased its popularity and viewership.

18. Roma (2018)

According to Wikipedia, Alfonso Cuarón directed "Roma" at a $15 million budget and it premiered on December 14, 2018. Ticket sales obtained 5.1 million dollars for the film. The limited investment of "Roma" generated three Academy Awards and established records as Netflix's most successful original product launch.

17. Triple Frontier (2019)

As per Wikipedia reports, the $115 million production of Triple Frontier by J.C. Chandor debuted in theatres worldwide on March 6th, 2019. This original production earned recognition from Netflix as its top-notch work because of its expensive production value. The casting team included “Oscar Isaac” and “Ben Affleck”. A movie's success often gets measured through its influence on both subscription increases and total views and streaming performances.

16. The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)

As per Wikipedia, on September 25th, 2020, Aaron Sorkin released his film "The Trial of the Chicago 7." The film achieved profitability while operating on a $35 million budget since it earned $115,709 at the box office. The film has been endorsed as Netflix's most successful original film by viewers due to its ideal plot, remarkable cast repertoire, and relevant storyline topics.

15. Project Power (2020)

The film production team of Ariel Schulman and Henry Joost invested $85.1 million into their film "Project Power" which Netflix released on August 14, 2020. The film gained different review responses yet generated substantial sales at the box office for Netflix. Viewers strongly responded to the drug fantasy concept of "Project Power" which provided five-minute superpower effects due to which Netflix gained substantial streaming numbers.

14. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)

According to Variety reports, at the box office, Glass Onion earned $15 million from viewers though it maintained a $40 million budget. The film found popularity because of its gripping mystery storylines and excellent cast of Daniel Craig while earning positive reviews from professional critics. The unique combination of extraordinary performance together with humor and tension pushed this film to become Netflix's most successful original production.

13. Money Heist Season 4 (2020)

The money spent on each episode of "Money Heist" Season 4 reached over $2 million when it premiered on April 3, 2020. Alex Pina directed season 4 and the director made the series incredibly popular and helped the platform to expand globally. As per the reports of "what's-on-Netflix", in 2018, the series achieved the status of Netflix's peak original performance. The international audience maintained intense interest throughout "Money Heist" viewing because it successfully merged complex plots with dramatic content along with persistent suspenseful tension.

12. Bird Box (2018)

Susan Bier's Bird Box came out with a $19.8 million production budget on December 21, 2018. The movie received negative reviews when it was released on Netflix during its first release month yet achieved massive streaming success afterwards. During its very first week of availability, Netflix's film reached more than 45 million accounts making it an instant universal hit. At the end of its first month, the film reached more than 89 million accounts. The production earned significant financial returns making it the biggest-winning Netflix original when released.

11. Wednesday Season 1 (2022)

Tim Burton directed Wednesday Season 1 which premiered on 23rd November (2022). Tim worked as both the executive producer and director on the television show. Straight out of its release schedule, the series hit 507.7 million streaming hours to become the most profitable original project on Netflix's platform to date. This series surpassed “Stranger Things Season 4”. The series’ powerful representation combined with its Gen Z focus and the viral success of its dance routine led to its big success. Moreover, this TV series has a record-breaking success, which was achieved by its global appeal across eighty-three countries among more than fifty million households.

10. Murder Mystery (2019)

Kyle Newacheck debuted Murder Mystery as his 2019 movie on June 14th. In its first three days, Murder Mystery received 30,869,863 views, making it the largest opening weekend for a Netflix movie ever. 17,494,949 accounts worldwide, 13,374,914 in the US and Canada. Adam Sandler introduces us to an absurd pair of detectives who solve a murder case while sailing on a wealthy man's yacht in this entertaining film.

9. The Adam Project (2022)

The “Adam Project” hit screens on March 11, 2022, following its initial funding of $116 million. During the first month on the streaming platform, it earned $157.6 million views, which established itself as Netflix's most profitable original content. The film gained wide popularity from its combination of action-packed drama with comedy alongside two talented casts featuring Mark Ruffalo and Ryan Reynolds.

8. Red Notice (2021)

The modern action comedy film “Red Notice” earned its production budget range of 130 to 200 million dollars under director “Rawson Marshall Thurber” to become commercially successful when it debuted on 4th November (2021). As per screenrant, the production of Red Notice resulted in a revenue of 160 million dollars. Half of Netflix's product library revenue comes from movies that gained massive popularity with viewers and led to many watched hours on the service. Red Notice took the top spot on "Netflix Global Top 10 List" when viewers watched it for 148.72 million hours during its first week.

7. The Gray Man (2022)

The “Gray Man” was released on 22nd July (2022) and it earned Netflix's highest success as the film spent $200 million to cast Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans. The Russo brothers directed this film until it generated $454,043 worth of earnings. Both the directors' “Marvel Cinematic Universe” status combined with their substantial marketing work delivered successful results.

6. The Jeffrey Dahmer Story (2022)

The “Jeffrey Dahmer Story” premiered on Netflix on September 21st (2022). Through Ryan Murphy's direction, the show reached the second spot for English language series metrics on Netflix in the first month of its release in 2022. The series’ interesting storytelling together with high-quality production quality resulted in a massive international audience engagement.

5. Money Heist Season 5 (2021)

“Money Heist” Season 5 became Netflix's most profitable original series and broke viewership records when it launched on September 3, 2021, with a budget of $30 million. After directing the series, Jesus Colmenar experienced that 69 million households engaged with the fifth and final season of Money Heist during the first month of its appearance on the Netflix platform (reports from gadgets360). The anticipated budget allocation for the show's season stretched from $500000 to $1 million.

4. Stranger Things Season 4 (2022)

Netflix released “Stranger Things Season 4” through two separate volumes in 2022. The first seven episodes of volume one were released on 27th May (2022) which was followed by the final two episodes showing through volume two on 1st July (2022). Ross and Matt Duffer directed the series. Moreover, the series became the highest gross original on Netflix with 1.15 billion hours viewed within the first month of its release. The budget for producing season 4 episodes was $270 million. The season produced an astounding $400 million internationally.

3. Don't Look Up (2021)

This movie comes at number three in the top 19 Netflix Original highest-gross movies. Adam McKay's “Don't Look Up (2021)” received a US release on December 10th, 2021. Netflix had listed the film as its second biggest movie success. On December 24th (2021) Netflix released their film to the public. Consumer revenue from the film's box office surpassed its $75 million budget by delivering $791.86 million in return. The audience estimation is between 400 million and half a billion people watched this content. The movie's themes of societal indifference and climate change hit harmony with many people, which helped to boost its massive audience.

2. Extraction (2020)

Extraction comes at number two in the top 19 Netflix Original highest gross movies. Sam Hargrave directed the movie "Extraction" and it captured the title of the top-grossing original movie for this platform when it was released in 2020. Netflix released this blockbuster under a $65 million budget in April 2020 where it earned 99 million viewers within a month of its release (Reports from Hindustantimes). The film achieved a blockbuster status along with its $810 million box office success.

1. Squid Game Season 1 (2021)

Squid Game Season 1 comes at number one in the top 19 Netflix Original highest-gross movies. Hwang Dong-hyuk wrote and directed the South Korean survival drama that premiered on Netflix. The international debut of the series was on September 17, 2021, and engrossed appreciation along with extensive audience engagement. According to the reports of Economictimes, the series earned the top title of Netflix shows by drawing 142 million households and accumulating 1.65 billion viewing hours in 94 countries around the world during the first month of its release. The series generated $900 million by October (2021).