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Laika’s ‘Wildwood’ Beats ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ To Claim the Crown for Most-Watched Trailer on YouTube

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In a year packed with Marvel crossovers, Christopher Nolan epics and blockbuster sequels, trailer season has been fiercely competitive. ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ set a Disney record when its first full trailer racked up 503 million views across platforms in 24 hours, while ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ still holds the overall launch record with 719 million. Those cross-platform totals have dominated headlines for months.

Yet YouTube tells a slightly different story. When it comes to the platform’s own view counts, the most-watched trailer of the year doesn’t belong to a superhero film at all, but to a handmade stop-motion fantasy from the makers of ‘Coraline’.

According to a ranking shared by Film Updates, Laika’s ‘Wildwood’ holds the top 2 spots among the most-viewed YouTube trailers for films released this year. Its official teaser trailer leads with 91 million views, and its official trailer follows closely with 89 million.

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‘Avengers: Doomsday’ takes third place with its official trailer at 81 million views. Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ lands fourth and fifth, with its official trailer at 62 million and its new trailer at 52 million.

The rest of the top 10 mixes heavyweights with surprises. ‘Primetime’ sits sixth with 50 million, tied with the ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Special Look, followed by ‘Backrooms’ at 49 million, ‘Reminders of Him’ at 48 million, and a ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ trailer at 45 million.

The ‘Wildwood’ official trailer debuted on August 19 and amassed more than 85 million YouTube views in under a week. At the time, the trailer for this summer’s box office champion, ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’, sat at 42 million.

Music played a big part in its reach. The trailer is driven by a moody cover of “Wake Me Up” by producer Tommee Profitt and vocalist Fleurie, giving the stop-motion footage an emotional pull that clearly resonated with viewers. It reportedly passed 100 million views across platforms soon after launch, making it one of the biggest animated trailer launches ever.

The trailer win hasn’t erased the film’s commercial challenges, though. ‘Wildwood’ opened in theaters on October 23 through event cinema specialist Fathom Entertainment and is pointing to an opening weekend of around $11 million, roughly in line with Laika’s history.

The film’s quality is not in question. It sits at 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and earned an A CinemaScore, tying ‘Kubo and the Two Strings’ for the best audience grade in the studio’s history. Critics have praised it as a marvelous technical achievement that packs an emotional wallop.

For Marvel, the ranking is less of a defeat than it looks. The ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ trailer’s record 503 million views came from all digital platforms globally, making it Disney’s biggest trailer launch ever. That momentum has translated into record presales, with the film tracking for one of the biggest opening weekends in history.

Still, the list highlights an interesting trend. Original and mid-budget titles like ‘Wildwood’, ‘Primetime’ and ‘Backrooms’ are holding their own against massive franchises, proving that a striking trailer can capture audiences regardless of brand recognition.

Which movie trailer has impressed you the most this year?

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