North Road Sweeps Netflix #1 Film, Series
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- North Road Company topped Netflix's global charts in the same week, with 'Apex' leading English-language films (40.2 million views in its second week) and 'Man on Fire' leading English-language series (11 million views).
- 'Apex', a Charlize Theron Australia-set survival thriller produced under North Road's Chernin Entertainment label, hit 40.2 million views in its second week, with Chernin, Jenno Topping and David Ready producing.
- 'Man on Fire' drew 11 million views, with Yahya Abdul-Mateen II starring in a series adaptation of the A.J. Quinnell novel that previously inspired the 2004 Denzel Washington film; Chernin, Topping and Tracey Cook produced alongside New Regency.
- North Road is the first independent producer to hold both top spots on Netflix simultaneously — Sony Entertainment had previously achieved that feat.
- The pending merger with French production giant Mediawan is set to expand North Road into potentially the largest independent content producer in the marketplace, per CEO Scott Manson.
- Netflix backed 'Apex' with heavy marketing, wallpapering major markets with P&A and sending Theron to climb atop a Times Square billboard; the Chemical Brothers' 'Go,' featured in a key plot moment, hit Spotify's Viral 50 and Shazam's top global song.
- Chernin and Manson said conversations about an 'Apex' sequel and a 'Man on Fire' Season 2 will 'likely happen soon,' though no official greenlights exist.
Why it matters: North Road is the first independent producer to sweep Netflix's top film and series slots, validating the scale-up strategy behind its pending Mediawan merger at a time when Netflix itself is under pressure to deliver hits. The dual #1s give Chernin leverage to convert momentum into sequel/season renewals and cement North Road's position as the largest independent producer in a market dominated by studio giants like Sony.
