Barack Obama Quietly Produced Netflix’s #8 Most-Watched Movie Ever
President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama made a lasting impression during their tenure at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Both routinely modeled empathy and human decency, leaving behind a legacy of kindness that is sorely missed at present.
Since the couple vacated the White House, they have tried their hand at filmmaking, launching their production label, Higher Ground Productions. It’s safe to say that they hit the ground running. Their first release, American Factory, debuted to universal acclaim and even took home the Oscar for Best Documentary in 2020.
In time, the duo eventually branched out, trying their hand at narrative fiction with the twisty thriller Leave the World Behind. It just so happens that Leave the World Behind struck a chord. In fact, it ranks as the most-watched paranoid thriller of all time on Netflix. Overall, it stands as the eighth most-watched English-language title on the streamer to date.
What’s the setup for Leave the World Behind?
A family vacation on Long Island is interrupted by two strangers bearing news of a blackout. As the threat grows, both families must decide how best to survive the potential crisis, all while grappling with their own place in this collapsing world.
Despite its impressive run on the platform, I can’t help but think that Leave the World Behind lacks the level of name recognition you’d expect from such a widely viewed effort. When I bring this flick up to people, few seem to know the picture by its title. I usually have to clarify that it’s the Netflix thriller directed by Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail, and it stars Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke, and Mahershala Ali. Generally, those corroborating details seem to produce a spark of recognition. Even still, it seems like despite the film’s resounding success, there are plenty who have yet to experience it.
Speaking of director Esmail, he has vivid recollections of his time working with President Obama. He previously sat down with Vanity Fair to chat about the flick and revealed that the former commander-in-chief helped him keep the proceedings more realistic and grounded.
“In the original drafts of the script, I definitely pushed things a lot farther than they were in the film, and President Obama, having the experience he does have, was able to ground me a little bit on how things might unfold in reality,” Esmail explained.
Knowing that the setup is guided by someone who has a pretty good idea of what the proceedings might look like if the scenario depicted within really happened stands as yet another reason to check this one out. If you’d like to do so, make your way over to Netflix and give Leave the World Behind a shot.
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