This New Korean Sci-Fi Movie Is Breaking Viewership Records on Netflix
The new Korean sci-fi movie The Great Flood had a huge weekend on Netflix, and people are clearly talking about it.
According to viewing data, the film launched at number one and pulled in 50.6 million hours watched in just three days. That equals about 27.9 million views, which is a massive start for any international release.
Netflix has given the movie a big title already, calling it “the best launch for an international film released on a Friday since the beginning of the ratings era.” That makes The Great Flood the strongest Friday debut Netflix has ever seen for an international movie, and it easily beat every other Korean film released on the same day in the past.
The Great Flood, also known by its Korean title 대홍수, is a South Korean science fiction disaster film. It was co-written and directed by Kim Byung-woo and stars Kim Da-mi and Park Hae-soo. The story mixes large-scale disaster with emotional sci-fi ideas and focuses on survival at the very end of humanity.
Before hitting Netflix, the film first premiered at the 30th Busan International Film Festival. It screened in the Korean Cinema Today – Special Premiere section on September 18, 2025, according to festival records. After that early showing, the movie was released worldwide on Netflix on December 19.
The story follows Anna, an AI researcher who has recently lost her husband. She wakes up to find her apartment building flooding. As water rises through the thirty-floor building, she tries to escape with her six-year-old son, Jain. During the chaos, she receives a call from the United Nations telling her that agents are coming to rescue them by helicopter.
As the story unfolds, Anna learns that world governments knew for years that an asteroid would hit the North Pole and flood the planet. Instead of warning the public, they secretly worked on advanced projects to preserve humanity.
Anna’s own work in artificial intelligence turns out to be part of that plan. The film takes a darker turn when it is revealed that Jain is not a natural child but an artificial being created from Anna’s AI research.
A catastrophic flood leaves a mother and son trapped. Their survival may impact all of humanity.
— Netflix (@netflix) December 20, 2025
The Great Flood is now playing. pic.twitter.com/tOtGlwBaZw
After a series of violent and emotional events, Anna is forced to leave behind others who are left to drown. She is sent toward a space station meant to save what remains of humanity, but the ending suggests that survival is far from guaranteed.
Reception so far has been mixed but mostly positive. According to Rotten Tomatoes, 60 percent of critics liked the film, based on early reviews. Still, the audience response on Netflix has been overwhelming, and the viewing numbers show that The Great Flood connected with viewers around the world almost instantly.
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