Wikipedia:Top 25 Report/December 31, 2023 to January 6, 2024

The Top 25 Report

This page contains material that is kept because it is considered humorous.
Such material is not meant to be taken seriously.

Don't forget to read the 2023 annual top 50 report

Most Popular Wikipedia Articles of the Week (December 31, 2023, to January 6, 2024)

Prepared with commentary by Igordebraga, CAWylie, Krimuk2.0, I am RedoStone, Rahcmander, and Shuipzv3.

⭠ Last week's report → Next week's report

New Year, and 2024 started with entertainment (including a movie that had a steady climb to the top spot), and scandals both old and new.

Rank	Article	Views	Notes/about
1	Saltburn (film)	2,471,062	After a brief theatrical run, this British thriller has gathered enough attention on Prime Video, along with its appearances in the award circuit, to ultimately top this list. Writer-director Emerald Fennell tells the story of an Oxford freshman from a humble background that spends vacation in a mansion with a rich classmate's eccentric family, ending up causing quite an impact on their lives.
2	Jeffrey Epstein	2,410,649	This deceased jet-setting financier re-entered the news after a judge released previously-sealed documents into a lawsuit by Virginia Giuffre against Ghislaine Maxwell (#14), who was Epstein's former partner and alleged associate in Epstein's sex trafficking ring. The documents did not list Epstein's "clients" or "co-conspirators", contrary to rampant rumors and fabricated images circulated online. Perhaps it's not surprising that misinformation flourished, given the numerous conspiracy theories into Epstein's death, culminating in the meme Epstein didn't kill himself.
3	Murder of Dee Dee Blanchard	1,902,021	As chronicled in 2019's The Act (starring Patricia Arquette, pictured), Dee Dee Blanchard fabricated illness and disabilities on daughter Gypsy Rose, down to forcing her to going around in a wheelchair, until Gypsy Rose got fed up and arranged for her online boyfriend to stab Dee Dee to death in 2015. Both were arrested, and during the closing days of 2023 Gypsy Rose received her parole after serving 85% of her sentence.
4	New Year's Day	1,629,457	All is quiet on New Year's Day A world in white gets underway I want to be with you Be with you night and day Nothing changes on New Year's Day...
5	Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire	1,591,328	Prashanth Neel's first of a two-part epic about an Indian prince seeking to replace his father during a military coup. It co-stars Prabhas (wax likeness pictured) and was released December 22.
6	12th Fail	1,546,152	Released theatrically in October, this Indian sleeper hit, about a poverty-stricken man becoming a police service officer, began streaming on Disney+ Hotstar this week.
7	New Year's Eve	1,407,004	I couldn't avoid putting that song up there. But since the TIME Person of the Year also spoke of year changes: Don't read the last page But I stay when you're lost, and I'm scared, and you're turning away I want your midnights But I'll be cleaning up bottles with you on New Year's Day
8	Dunki (film)	1,213,882	Released in late December, this comedy-drama about immigration, co-written and directed by Rajkumar Hirani, finished the year as the sixth highest-grossing Hindi film and the ninth highest-grossing Indian film of 2023.
9	Luke Littler	960,491	At just 16, this English darts player reached the finals of the 2024 PDC World Darts Championship. He lost to another player with the same name and nationality (#20), but certainly drew more attention.
10	Fool Me Once (TV series)	958,298	Two murders in one family, but then one of the victims (Richard Armitage, pictured) later appears in home security footage. This eight-part murder mystery series, based on the Harlan Coben novel, debuted on Netflix this week.
11	Deaths in 2024	918,610	"We may be walking to our deaths, but I would rather walk to meet my death than wait for it to come to me." – Nando Parrado, survivor of #24
12	David Soul	912,303	This American-British actor (Starsky & Hutch, Magnum Force) and singer ("Don't Give Up on Us") died on January 4 at the age of 80.
13	Christian Oliver	907,081	This German actor, his two daughters, and their pilot were killed on January 4, when their small plane crashed in the Caribbean.
14	Ghislaine Maxwell	839,141	This former partner and alleged partner-in-crime of #2 is serving 20 years in prison after being convicted on multiple counts of sex trafficking.
15	Animal (2023 film)	830,511	Bollywood blockbuster criticized for embodying toxic masculinity - the protagonist is not a regular horndog like the movie's namesake, but also very violent - yet highly successful at the box office, with director Sandeep Reddy Vanga saying sequel Animal Park is in the works.
16	Katt Williams	787,359	This comedian spoke candidly this week on Shannon Sharpe's podcast Club Shay Shay. The episode received 18.5 million YouTube views in less than 48 hours and ten-fold visits to his page.
17	Barry Keoghan	761,896	#1 is the latest high point of this Irish actor's career, expected to give him award nominations like his supporting role in The Banshees of Inisherin did last year. And wonder if the sequel to The Batman will again feature Keoghan as The Joker...
18	Michelle Keegan	726,507	This English actress stars in #10, which debuted on Netflix this week.
19	British Post Office scandal	651,707	Mr Bates vs The Post Office, a British series dramatising the wrongful prosecution of postmasters, was released on ITV this week.
20	Luke Humphries	646,652	This 28-year-old beat 16-year-old Luke Littler (but not in this list because he's #9) in the 2024 PDC World Darts Championship this week. Then again, Humphries is World No. 1.
21	Leave the World Behind (film)	637,210	Like Bird Box, a Netflix apocalyptic movie - albeit set during the societal collapse rather than after - that got much attention along with much discussion on whether it was any good. (It certainly delivers on tension and acting, but the characters get grating at points, and the final scene is very anti-climactic.)
22	List of highest-grossing Indian films	623,331	#5, #8 and #15 continue to climb up this list, with all 3 landing spots in the top 30.
23	Leonard Bernstein	610,494	Bradley Cooper directed and starred in a Netflix movie about this famous composer/conductor, Maestro.
24	Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571	599,755	In October 1972, this chartered flight with 45 people onboard crashed in the Andes Mountains; 33 initially survived, but only 16 lived to be rescued 72 days later. The incident has been retold and portrayed countless times, including the critically-acclaimed Spanish film Society of the Snow, which was released theatrically late in 2023 and onto Netflix this week.
25	Claudine Gay	582,094	Preventing J. Robert Oppenheimer from showing up again is the president of Harvard University who resigned after just one semester, criticized for her responses on how the antisemitism ignited by the 2023 Israel-Hamas war would dealt with in her campus, as well as accusations of plagiarism.