Mr. Robot has officially said “hello, friend” to paid video on-demand success. The Rami Malek-led cyberpunk thriller has hacked its way to digital popularity, emerging as a top pick on the Apple TV Store a little more than six years after its final episode hit airwaves.
As of Jan. 27, Mr. Robot is dominating the streamer’s video-on-demand charts, holding second place on the platform’s list of top 10 most-watched shows in both Canada and the United States. Coming in behind RuPaul’s Drag Race on the platform’s stateside list of its highest-performing series, Mr. Robot bested several other prestige TV programs, including Landman, IT: Welcome to Derry, and Euphoria. The show was previously available to stream on Netflix before leaving for PVOD on Jan. 3.
Premiering on the USA Network in 2015, Mr. Robot centers on Malek’s Elliot Alderson, a highly skilled cybersecurity expert and hacker who faces off against an evil tech conglomerate, vigilante groups, and struggles with his own mental illnesses, further complicated by the program’s Fight Club-inspired twist. Mr. Robot, which boasted a stacked cast including Christian Slater, Carly Chaikin, Portia Doubleday, Martin Wallström, and Grace Gummer, earned favor among both fans and professional reviewers, holding respective 93% and 94% ratings on Rotten Tomatoes’ critical Tomatometer and the site’s audience-comprised Popcornmeter.
Alongside the widespread praise for its timely political commentary and gripping premise, Mr. Robot earned several awards following its first season. The series won two Golden Globes in 2016, including Best Television Series – Drama and Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film for Slater. Mr. Robot also earned a pair of Primetime Emmy Awards that year, with Malek taking home the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. Mr. Robot would ultimately pick up one more Emmy throughout its four-year run, earning the prize for Outstanding Interactive Extension of a Linear Program in 2020.
Rami Malek Greatly Admired His Co-Star Christian Slater
An Emmy wasn’t the only prize Malek took from his time portraying Elliot. He also gained a lifelong friend in Slater, the other half of his on-screen persona. Malek recently recalled the moment he first encountered the Heathers alum during production, telling his former colleague just how much he admired him during their early days working together.
“I remember meeting you for Mr. Robot and being quite starstruck, and I was quite taken aback by how humble, kind, and generous you were,” Malek explained to his former co-star during a conversation for Interview Magazine last October. Though Malek was a “huge fan” of Slater’s and had watched “all of [his] work,” he managed to keep it together while on set.
“To be in the room with you, it feels special,” Malek continued of his longtime pal. “I can understand how someone can fan out over you, but it didn’t throw me. You’re very disarming and charming, to a point where I thought, ‘This cannot be genuine,’ but what I discovered is that it is. You really are who you are, and that is a rare quality in a human being who is often asked to present.”
Mr. Robot is currently available for purchase on the Apple TV Store.
Release Date
2015 – 2019
Network
USA Network
Showrunner
Sam Esmail
Directors
Jim McKay, Christoph Schrewe, Niels Arden Oplev, Nisha Ganatra, Tricia Brock
Writers
Sam Esmail, Adam Penn, Randolph Leon, Kor Adana, Robbie Pickering, Lucy Teitler, Kate Erickson
