The media hype surrounding Grand Theft Auto VI continues to break all records. To showcase the latest gameplay, Rockstar Games has taken a very unusual route and created a 27-minute video titled “GTA 6: Expanded Appearances,” with the first six hours available exclusively to streaming giant Netflix. While many industry observers initially viewed this move behind a paywall as a bold risk, the numbers now speak for themselves: Gameplay Insights racked up a whopping 31.1 million views in its first four days and easily topped the global Netflix charts.
Netflix’s official viewing data (the film is classified in the feature film category) illustrates the huge dominance of gaming showcases. Footage recorded on PlayStation 5 garnered 31.1 million views, significantly beating out established Hollywood rivals such as the star-studded thriller The Whisperers (23.2 million views) or the new season of the hit series Outer Banks. Among the 93 countries covered by Netflix, the “GTA” film directly climbed to the top of the streaming charts in 87 countries.
The results are particularly striking when it comes to how the platform is calculated. Video services like YouTube count views per view, while Netflix calculates views based on the total length of viewing divided by the total running time of the content. The video is less than 27 minutes long and has been watched by global audiences for approximately 14 million hours in just four days. Direct comparisons with free platforms also prove that this exclusive deal is a complete success.
The delayed version on YouTube racked up about 17 million views in the same period – leaving Netflix significantly ahead of free video platforms despite the paywall barrier. For a short period of time, the huge rush to premiere on August 27, 2026 even caused a technical outage and led to an increase of approximately 35% in the number of active Netflix users.
The impressive viewership once again highlights Rockstar Games’ special position in the entertainment industry. The fact that even unreviewed gameplay content from the upcoming video game leaves behind some of the most influential movies and series on streaming services around the world is a clear exclamation point for the impending start of sales.
