Netflix’s ‘Short-Ass Movies’ category, explained

In case there was any question about whether or not the fine folks at Netflix actually pay attention to public commentary, the streaming giant has now added a category titled “Short-Ass Movies” to its service in response to Pete Davidson’s recent SNL skit. 

In the skit, Davidson sang about his desire to watch a film without having to wet his pants or fall asleep, and he’s not wrong. Too many films of late, likeThe Batman (2h 56m), Zack Snyder’s Justice League (4h), and Avengers: Endgame (3h 1m) had us all with ants in our pants by the time the credits rolled, darting to the bathroom faster than you could say “Avengers assemble.”

Naturally, not everyone wants to sit through a three-hour film, or even a two-and-a-half-hour film, so for anyone wanting a quick hit instead of a slow slog, Netflix has added the aptly titled “Short-Ass Movies” category for your viewing pleasure.

Many have already praised Netflix for the new addition, with one viewer saying that it’s why they continue paying for the platform even though it keeps raising its prices.

The liqueur company Jägermeister even called Davidson a hero for his contribution to short movie viewing. 

Now, before you go looking for the new category on Netflix’s homepage, be advised that you won’t find it simply by scrolling. The new category can confusingly only be found by typing it into the search bar. A page like the one below will appear when you type in “short-ass movies,” revealing Netflix’s current recommendations for viewings of the short-ass variety.

Disappointingly, the category lacks some of the films mentioned in the skit, like The Lion King and Driving Miss Daisy, but that’s likely because the former now belongs to Disney Plus and the latter has left the platform after once being on it (and can now be rented on Amazon Prime Video or streamed on Apple TV Plus). However, there are still plenty of good titles out there that Netflix has added, like Zoolander, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Stand By Me.

Some notably short films that the streamer seems to have forgotten to include are the ones in the Shrek series, all of which are under 1h 35m in length. Given that this a new category for the platform, however, Netflix will undoubtedly add more titles as time goes by.

Don’t look too closely, though, otherwise you might find Netflix’s cousin category titled “Movies Under 90 Minutes,” which is more like an identical twin than a cousin, sporting exactly the same titles as the ones in “Short-Ass Movies.” We’ll let that slide for now, though. Perhaps the streaming giant will keep the newly-titled category and get rid of the older one, or vise versa. We’ll just have to wait and see.

In the meantime, if you’re looking to binge a couple of “short-ass movies” in the time it would take you to watch Avengers: Endgame, here’s where you can do that.