Well, well, well, look who's getting a taste of their own medicine. Here I was, comfortably nestled in 2026, thinking the streaming throne was firmly occupied by Benoit Blanc and his latest tangled web in Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery. The film landed on Netflix like a perfectly executed alibi, all sharp wit and star power, and promptly started ruling the charts with the smug confidence of a detective who's already solved the case. But just as a magician's trick loses its luster once you know the secret, the sheen on Rian Johnson's latest whodunit is starting to dull. Because climbing the ranks with the quiet, unsettling persistence of a bloodstain seeping through a rug is Murder in Monaco, a true crime documentary that's proving reality can be stranger, and more gripping, than fiction.

Let's talk numbers, because in the streaming game, they're the only alibi that matters. According to the chart-watchers at FlixPatrol, as of late December 2025, Wake Up Dead Man was clinging to the global No. 3 spot. Respectable, sure, but it had already been unseated from the top by the South Korean disaster flick The Great Flood. More interestingly, hot on its heels at No. 4 was Murder in Monaco. That's right, a documentary about a real-life, decades-old mystery was right behind a glossy, A-list Hollywood murder mystery. It's like watching a meticulously trained show horse get overtaken in the final stretch by a wild mustang that just emerged from the canyon. In the U.S. charts, the doc held its own at No. 5, nestled among holiday romances and animated families, proving its appeal wasn't just a fluke.

So, what's the story behind this usurper? Murder in Monaco, directed by Hodges Usry, plunges us into the opaquely sinister world of 1999 Monaco to investigate the death of billionaire banker Edmond Safra. Found dead in his penthouse, the case is a labyrinth of wealth, power, and unanswered questions. While professional critics have been sparse, the film has garnered positive buzz on platforms like Rotten Tomatoes and, more importantly, from Netflix's own subscribers. This audience hunger is no accident. Netflix has been cultivating a palate for premium true crime like a sommelier aging a fine wine. Earlier in 2025, they released The Perfect Neighbor, a documentary that holds a staggering 99% on Rotten Tomatoes and is a frontrunner for the 2026 Oscars' Best Documentary category. That film's success, dissecting a fatal neighbor dispute in Florida, showed that viewers crave these deep, critical dives into real-world justice and tragedy.

Now, don't get me wrong. Wake Up Dead Man is no slouch. With a 92% Tomatometer score, it's a critical darling and a commercial hit. But its descent on the charts a few weeks post-premiere is as predictable as the third-act twist in a cozy mystery. It's the lifecycle of a blockbuster streaming release: a big splash, then a gradual retreat as the next shiny object appears. Murder in Monaco, however, represents a different beast. It doesn't rely on star power or a tightly scripted plot. Its appeal is grimmer, more primal—it's the real deal. Watching it feels less like entertainment and more like eavesdropping on history's darkest secrets, a sensation as compelling as finding a hidden diary in a forgotten attic.

This holiday season on Netflix is a fascinating study in contrasts. Your queue might look something like this:

Netflix is masterfully serving this buffet of content. Alongside these true-crime hits, they continue to feed our darker curiosities with series like the Monster anthology, while also offering the family-friendly counterprogramming of The Croods: A New Age. It's a ecosystem where a billionaire's death in Monaco can compete with a cartoon family's adventures and a green grump stealing Christmas.

So, what does this chart shuffle tell us? It's a reminder that in the streaming world, longevity isn't always about the biggest budget or the brightest star. Sometimes, it's about the haunting whisper of a true story, one that refuses to be solved neatly in two hours. Wake Up Dead Man gave us a fantastic puzzle box, but Murder in Monaco offers a chasm—a real one, with shadows that linger long after the credits roll. The throne is always contested, and right now, reality is giving fiction a run for its money, proving that the most gripping mysteries are often the ones where the final page has yet to be written.