It’s now the summer movie season, which means there will be several high-profile titles opening in theaters over the next few months, but streaming services will continue to have notable new arrivals of their own. Each month, the likes of Netflix, HBO Max, and more receive a new wave of fresh additions, some of which are originals hoping to strike a chord with viewers. Often times, these movies can be extremely successful; one of the biggest hits of 2025 was Netflix’s own Kpop Demon Hunters, which ended up winning the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. Now, Netflix looks to have another major animated hit on its hands.
According to Netflix, Swapped was the No. 2 English-language film on the streamer this past week (it premiered on May 1st). The film netted 15.5 million views, which is “the biggest three-day opening for a Netflix animated film since Leo.” Swapped only trailed the new action thriller Apex on the charts.
Swapped‘s Streaming Viewership Numbers Explained
Image courtesy of Netflix
With a total of 15.5 million views, Swapped was streamed for 26.4 million hours during its first few days. To put that figure in perspective, when Kpop Demon Hunters debuted last year, it opened with 5.4 million views for a total of 9 million hours streamed. Of course, this doesn’t mean Swapped is going to become more popular than Kpop Demon Hunters long-term. After its modest start, Kpop Demon Hunters transformed into a global sensation through word of mouth, and it continues to place in Netflix’s weekly top 10 nearly a full year later. That kind of run is unprecedented, so unless Swapped also goes viral to such an extreme degree, it will eventually lag behind Kpop Demon Hunters in terms of viewership.
Nevertheless, this is a great start for the new animated film, and it’s easy to see why Swapped has found success right away. Not only has it received generally positive reviews (70% on Rotten Tomatoes as of this writing), it also sports an entertaining premise that serves as a compelling hook. Swapped puts a fun twist on the body swap concept, telling a story about an otter named Ollie and a bird named Ivy, who end up swapping bodies with each other and embark on an adventure. The voice cast includes recent Oscar winner Michael B. Jordan and Ted Lasso‘s Juno Temple, so it boasts plenty of star power to appeal to general viewers.
It seems the easiest way to make a hit animated film these days is to include some talking animals. Zootopia 2 ended its theatrical run as the highest-grossing film of 2025 domestically, and Pixar’s Hoppers netted the strongest debut for an original animated movie since 2017. Swapped continues the trend, and while it would have been interesting to see how it would have fared with a traditional theatrical release, the creative team can take solace in knowing their work resonated with people at home. This is an illustration of why it’s great platforms like Netflix exist, as they allow certain movies to find a sizable audience.
While it’s unlikely Swapped will surpass Kpop Demon Hunters, it’s nice to see Netflix score another animated hit. Over the years, the streamer has found a lot of success with action movies, rom-coms, and sci-fi, so a string of big animated movies can help Netflix diversify its portfolio and find more demographics to reach. Perhaps this could be the start of a new animated franchise for the streamer, or at the very least, the beginning of a collaborative relationship with the creative team.
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