The best movie of 2022 was also its highest-grossing one, according to one in five Americans. A recent OnePoll survey of 2,000 respondents finds that 19 percent selected “Top Gun: Maverick” as one of their favorites for the year. Making it the most popular choice among those polled.
However, fans weren’t the only ones who walked away impressed. In addition to the $1.48 billion it collected at the box office this year, “Maverick” has already received two Golden Globe nominations from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. As well as the title of Best Film by the National Board of Review.
Originally announced by Paramount Pictures back in 2010, the sequel took its time getting to theaters as a result of behind-the-scenes complications and pandemic-related delays. Moving its release date four times before finally landing on May 27, 2022.
Tom Cruise himself was adamant that the film would debut in theaters. Telling a Q&A at Cannes that a streaming-only premiere was “never going to happen.”
The best movies of the rest from 2022
Looking at the rest of OnePoll’s Best-Of list, only one streaming-exclusive film cracked the top ten – “Enola Holmes 2,” starring Millie Bobby Brown as the titular Enola and Henry Cavill as her better-recognized brother, Sherlock Holmes.
Other films that made the list included highly anticipated sequels like “Jurassic World: Dominion” (17%) and Marvel’s “Thor: Love and Thunder” (15%), as well as critically acclaimed films like “The Whale” (11%) and a new cult classic like “Bodies Bodies Bodies” (11%).
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Although “Top Gun: Maverick” received the largest number of “thumbs up,” other movies received a slightly higher percentage of positive reviews relative to the number of respondents who watched. Like “Where the Crawdads Sing,” which was liked by 61 percent of respondents.
A few other movies had more unanimously positive feedback among those who watched it. Such as “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (58%).
Still, “Top Gun: Maverick” stood out as one the top-10 most-watched films of 2022. And the film which received the largest number of “thumbs up” reviews among respondents.
Not one to take his success for granted, Cruise recently posted a video to social media thanking everyone for “coming out to the theaters” and supporting “Top Gun: Maverick.” Just before fist-bumping “Mission Impossible” director Chris McQuarrie and free-falling out of a plane.
Survey methodology:
This random double-opt-in survey of 2,000 general population Americans was conducted between Dec. 16–19, 2022. It was launched by market research company OnePoll, whose team members are members of the Market Research Society and have corporate membership to the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) and the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR).