Denzel Washington’s Forgotten Se7en-Like Crime Thriller Is Now A Netflix Worldwide Streaming Hit 4 Years Later
The Little Things, Denzel Washington’s forgotten Se7en-like crime thriller, is now a Netflix worldwide streaming hit. The 2021 film stars Denzel Washington as a detective investigating a series of murders in early 1990s Los Angeles.
Now, four years after its original release, The Little Things ranks seventh on Netflix’s Top 10 movies worldwide for today, November 20. It ranks below Champagne Problems, In Your Dreams, Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein, A Merry Little Ex-Mas, The Carman Family Deaths, The Family Stone, and above Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, Jolly LLB 3, and KPop Demon Hunters.
The Little Things also ranks seventh on Netflix’s Global Top 10 movies for the week of November 10–16 with 5.3 million views and 11.4 million hours viewed. It’s a Top 10 movie on Netflix in 21 countries this week, all located in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The Little Things is streaming on Netflix in the United States.
Written and directed by John Lee Hancock, The Little Things follows a pair of detectives (played by Denzel Washington and Rami Malek) as their investigation into a series of murders in early 1990s Los Angeles leads them to a peculiar suspect (played by Jared Leto) who may or may not be responsible for the crimes.
Other than the Oscar-winning trio of Denzel Washington (Training Day, Glory), Rami Malek (Bohemian Rhapsody), and Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club), The Little Things cast also includes Chris Bauer, Michael Hyatt, Terry Kinney, Natalie Morales, Isabel Arraiza, Joris Jarsky, Glenn Morshower, Sofia Vassilieva, and Maya Kazan.
The Little Things received mixed reviews from critics at the time of its release for being expertly cast and styled like a classic crime thriller, delivering a sense of déjà vu for fans of the genre, both its strengths and its shortcomings included.
On the other hand, audiences found the plot to be particularly unremarkable and the ending disappointing, though the film’s attention to the emotional strain of police work was refreshing, and the stellar cast certainly speaks for itself.
Some argued that the film fails to offer anything fresh for the serial killer thriller genre, while others found its twists and turns too predictable, comparing it unfavorably to David Fincher’s Se7en (1995).
The Little Things has a 45% Rotten Tomatoes score from the critics, coupled with a 67% audience score.
The Little Things bombed at the box office, making just $30.8 million against its $30 million budget. However, it was released at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in January 2021, and was one of Warner Bros.’ titles that were released simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max, which hindered its box office.
The Little Things was also quite controversial because of the timing of its release, debuting during a time when there was immense distrust in the police due to the murder of George Floyd and other high-profile police killings. In the film, Denzel Washington and Rami Malek’s police detectives are involved in the death of innocent individuals and get away with it.
However, The Little Things has remained popular on streaming over the years, previously appearing in second place on Netflix’s Global Top 10 for the week of April 1–7, 2024, with 8.7 million views.
Release Date
January 28, 2021
Runtime
128 minutes
Director
John Lee Hancock
Writers
John Lee Hancock
Producers
Mark Johnson, John Lee Hancock, Donald Sparks
