Streaming services rarely if ever tend to offer the full picture when it comes to viewership numbers, and that’s especially true for HBO Max. Netflix often tout the success of their biggest original movies and TV shows if they draw in a large enough audience, but WarnerMedia’s platform has been highly reticent to give out complete data.
Nobody knows for sure exactly how many eyeballs Zack Snyder’s Justice League drew in, while Godzilla vs. Kong‘s opening weekend was followed by a statement touting it as HBO Max’s most-watched debut ever, but there weren’t any actual figures provided. So far, third party analytics firm Samba TV have offered us the best indication of the customer base’s viewing habits, with Mortal Kombat said to have generated more views in its first three days than Godzilla vs. Kong managed in five, as you can see below.
Nearly 3.8 million US households watched Mortal Kombat during its opening weekend, according to Samba TV.#MortalKombat had more viewership in just 3 days (Fri-Sun) than Godzilla vs. Kong got in its first 5. pic.twitter.com/xE7dRInfzy
— Rob Keyes (@rob_keyes) April 26, 2021
Of course, Warner Bros. never gave the video game adaptation the glowing press release that accompanied Godzilla vs. Kong, and Samba TV’s statistics only cover televisions that have the company’s software installed, so it’s hard to know for sure if Mortal Kombat drew a bigger overall crowd for home viewing than the most recent chapter in the MonsterVerse.
That being said, 3.8 million within the purview of Samba TV’s sample size is still a mighty impressive number, and when you add that to an opening weekend box office haul of over $22 million, then it’s clear the appetite is there for Mortal Kombat to launch a franchise. The reboot only cost $55 million to make, too, so no matter which way you choose to look at the data, it can’t be deemed anything other than an unqualified success for the studio.
