Apple TV Plus seems to be feeling the holiday spirit over its latest releases.
As reported by Deadline, the company appears to have two major hits on its hand to close out the year. While the company never releases specific numbers, it has told the outlet that Spirited, the new holiday musical starring Ryan Reynolds, Will Ferrell, and Octavia Spencer has “broken records to become the biggest film ever on the platform.”
Spirited will tell the story of the Ghost of Christmas Present (Will Ferrell), who, each Christmas Eve, “selects one dark soul to be reformed by a visit from three spirits. But this season, he picked the wrong Scrooge. Clint Briggs (Ryan Reynolds) turns the tables on his ghostly host until Present finds himself reexamining his own past, present and future. For the first time, “A Christmas Carol” is told from the perspective of the ghosts in this hilarious musical twist on the classic Dickens tale.”
Spirited isn’t the only big hit the company has right now
While Spirited might be the biggest film the streaming service has seen yet, it isn’t the only one to break records for the platform. Sources at the company said that Emancipation, the new drama film directed by Antoine Fuqua and starring Will Smith, “has drawn +27% new viewers to Apple TV+ and has become the No. 1 movie internationally including in Mexico, Brazil, Canada, Australia, Italy, France, Germany, and Korea.”
The film is “inspired by the 1863 photos of “Whipped Peter,” taken during a Union Army medical examination, that first appeared in Harper’s Weekly. One image, known as “The Scourged Back,” which shows Peter’s bare back mutilated by a whipping delivered by his enslavers, ultimately contributed to growing public opposition to slavery.”
The company also noted that Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me, the new documentary about the pop star, “opened atop Apple’s young-adult rankings.”
We’ll see if Spirited or Emancipation make their way into the next round of award shows. Regardless, both seem to be making major moves for Apple TV Plus.
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