Max Uses Netflix Trick When Crafting Their New Top 10 Lists

Max is reportedly using a Netflix trick when crafting their new Top 10 lists. The streamer — formerly known as HBO Max — recently debuted lists of its top 10 movies and shows. Among the projects included on the lists are The Flash, Sex and the City revival series And Just Like That, and Avatar.

According to IndieWire, Max determines its Top 10 lists by looking at the number of unique user profiles that watched a title for at least two minutes. It then refreshes the lists each day. The outlet noted that this may sound familiar because it is the way Netflix used to calculate its Top 10 lists for roughly two years, from January 2020 until October 2021. The following are currently the Top 10 movies on Max:

1. The Flash (Warner Bros.)
2. BS High (Max)
3. Get Hard (Warner Bros.)
4. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (20th Century Studios)
5. Twister (Warner Bros.)
6. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (Sony)
7. Avatar (20th Century Studios)
8. American Gangster (Universal)
9. Spaceballs (MGM)
10. Miss Congeniality (Warner Bros.)

The current Top 10 series are as follows:

1. Hard Knocks (Max)
2. And Just Like That... (Max)
3. Winning Time (Max)
4. Telemarketers (Max)
5. Harley Quinn (Max)
6. Fionna and Cake (Max)
7. 90 Day: The Last Resort (Discovery+)
8. 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way (Discovery+)
9. Kim Vs. Kanye: The Divorce (Discovery+)
10. Sister Wives (Discovery+)

As for Netflix, they have begun ranking their Top 10 titles based on "views." The streaming service does this by adding up the total hours watched on a movie or TV show, then dividing it by the total runtime and rounding to the nearest 100,000. This results in the number of views they deem valid.

Notably, Nielsen tracks U.S. streaming — services such as Amazon Prime, AppleTV+, Disney+, HBO Max, Hulu, Paramount+, Peacock, and Netflix — by the total minutes watched through a TV set by any viewer from age 2 and up. IndieWire pointed out that Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+ both have Top 10 lists as well, though neither has offered a means by which they make their determinations.

The new information comes after it was reported that Max is removing a major original show and refusing to air the series' second season. According to TVLine, Max is cutting loose The Tourist, a BBC thriller starring Jamie Dornan and Danielle Macdonald. The series will be leaving Max on Sept. 8. While Max — previously HBO Max — had been the U.S. home for Season 1 of the streaming series, it is currently unclear where or if the previously announced Season 2 will make it stateside.