Wikipedia:Top 25 Report/November 26 to December 2, 2023

Most Popular Wikipedia Articles of the Week (November 26 to December 2, 2023)

Prepared with commentary by Igordebraga, TheJoebro64, CAWylie, Ltbdl, GeorgeBailey, and a helpful IP.

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

Many recent deaths here, including the top entry that only died at 100, and two who were almost centenarians as well (plus the still living widower of one). Otherwise there's also films and the return of emperors and (wrestling) kings.

Rank	Article	Views	Notes/about
1	Henry Kissinger	3,545,119	November 29 marked the death of one of the most polarizing figures in modern American politics and the last surviving member of Nixon's cabinet. Kissinger served as secretary of state under the Nixon and Ford administrations; supporters consider him one of the most effective secretaries of state in American history, while detractors consider him a war criminal for overlooking human rights violations in the name of maintaining international stability. Reactions were, predictably, divided, with a plentiful mix of eulogies and crab raves.
2	Animal (2023 film)	2,580,620	What's the big deal? I'm an animal! The manosphere wave seems to have hit India, with this film's titular character self-describing himself as an "alpha male" and spouting inflammatory nonsense that would make Tate proud. It has not impressed critics (The Guardian calls the lead "one of the vilest protagonists in cinema history"), but has had one of the biggest box office openings for an Indian film this year.
3	Shane MacGowan	1,214,906	"The boys of the NYPD choir Were singing Galway Bay And the bells were ringing out For Christmas day" November 30 marked the death of the Celtic punk rocker, best known as the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of The Pogues. He featured as the principal songwriter and vocalist on the band's first five studio albums, including Rum Sodomy & the Lash (1985) and the critically acclaimed and commercially successful If I Should Fall from Grace with God (1988). He co-wrote the Christmas hit single "Fairytale of New York" (1987), which the Pogues recorded as a duet between MacGowan and Kirsty MacColl; the song remains a perennial Christmas favourite in the UK and Ireland and was certified quintuple platinum in the UK in 2022. Outside the Pogues, MacGowan also produced solo material and collaborated with other artists.
4	Napoleon	974,717	Slate published a story (that includes mentions to our Report!) about how French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte is the latest case of Wikipedia readers checking on articles about historical figures chronicled in current movies (see below).
5	Deaths in 2023	942,511	To quote the above, "Death is nothing, but to live defeated and inglorious is to die daily."
6	Napoleon (2023 film)	867,876	Ridley Scott directed this historical epic about #4 starring Joaquin Phoenix, and unlike the first time they worked together it has not seen the same critical and commercial success, including how this time people haven't given the same leniency regarding playing fast and loose with history. In any case, another project on the same guy is on the works, as Steven Spielberg decided to make a miniseries out of the unproduced Napoleon script by the late great Stanley Kubrick (which even inspired a book), the second time Spielberg revived a Kubrick project after A.I. Artificial Intelligence.
7	Jimmy Carter	798,608	The 39th American president is 99 years old and currently in hospice care for melanoma, but made a public appearance at the funeral for his First Lady (#25), accompanied by their four children.
8	George Santos	741,743	The alleged criminal and former Emperor, Pope, and President finally gets expelled from the US House of Representatives.
9	2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup	735,626	The final two qualifying cricket tournaments (Asia and Africa) were held this month. Twenty teams are now set to face off in June 2024.
10	Terry Venables	695,191	"El Tel" died this week at age 80. A football player and manager, Venables' style of play in the 1960s was considered modern and innovative, a contrast to the rigid tactical style that once dominated English football.
11	ChatGPT	686,323	Nope. I said I'm not writing another entry. My mouth is shut. That is final.
12	Charlie Munger	685,653	The vice-chair of Berkshire Hathaway died this week at age 99. As an executive, Munger was also the "right-hand man" of company CEO Warren Buffett.
13	Leo (2023 Indian film)	669,401	Released in October, this Indian Tamil-language action thriller is the third installment of the Lokesh Cinematic Universe, and it was slightly less expensive to make than #14.
14	Tiger 3	664,677	This Indian Hindi-language action thriller has been successful since its release in mid-November, were it not also being the most-expensive film made in the YRF Spy Universe (₹300 crore).
15	Macaulay Culkin	659,823	Christmas is right around the corner, which means that a lot of people are going to be rewatching the first two Home Alone movies. So it's fitting that Culkin, who starred in them as the endearingly bratty Kevin McCallister, received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on December 1.
16	Saltburn (film)	652,924	This black comedy thriller – written, directed, and produced by Emerald Fennell – opened globally this week and has received praise for its performances and visuals, but criticism for lacking substance.
17	Survivor Series: WarGames (2023)	622,594	This particular professional wrestling streaming event garnered interest, due to the return of Randy Orton and R-Truth, both of whom had been out with injuries since 2022, and the return of #23, who semi-retired and left WWE in 2017.
18	Bhopal disaster	546,642	Renewed interest in the 1984 chemical plant accident in Bhopal was ignited by the release of Netflix series The Railway Men, detailing the workers who saved survivors.
19	Sandra Day O'Connor	537,931	The first woman to serve on Supreme Court of the United States died on December 1. She was appointed by Ronald Reagan in 1981 and served as an associate justice until 2006.
20	The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes	511,431	This dystopian action film, a prequel in The Hunger Games film series, opened in the US on November 17 and has earned US$244 million, despite mixed reviews from critics (who approved the acting and aesthetics, but were more ambivalent to how after the deadly arena event there's still a lot of story to go).
21	UEFA Champions League	511,299	The second half of the group stage of the 69th gathering of Europe's best football clubs is currently taking place.
22	Brenda Song	501,204	The girlfriend of #15 appeared with him, as he received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on December 1. She also brought their two-year-old son, who was sporting a Mohawk hairstyle that deserves its own social media page.
23	CM Punk	491,050	After retiring from professional wrestling from the WWE in 2017, then returning with another company in 2021, the prodigal wrestler returned this week with an appearance at #17 and cutting a promotion saying he's "back where he belongs" on WWE Raw, a few days later.
24	Lin Laishram	466,067	This Indian model and actress married actor Randeep Hooda this week (he's the one to the left, as Commons doesn't have her picture).
25	Rosalynn Carter	463,354	Closing it off and keeping away #26 Elon Musk is #7's late wife, who was very active during his government. Her funeral was attended by the five living First Ladies: Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush, Michelle Obama, Melania Trump and Jill Biden.