One Of The Best (And Most Underrated) Superhero Movies Of The 2010s Is Taking Over Max

It's always nice to see a decent movie faring well on streaming services. Most streamers' charts are typically populated by some of the most questionable "content" you're ever likely to encounter on your journey through the streaming sphere, but there are still some standouts that crop up from time to time. Case in point: "Chronicle."

This 2012 superhero origin story/sci-fi thriller/teen drama caused a minor stir upon its debut for presenting an original take on the superhero genre using a found-footage approach. The film also put stars Dane DeHaan and Michael B. Jordan on the map and established director Josh Trank as one of the most promising young filmmakers of the time. Sadly, his next film, 2015's "Fantastic Four", proved to be a box office flop that put Trank in director jail, but "Chronicle" remains a well-respected directorial debut.

The film follows three Seattle high school seniors: DeHaan's Andrew, his cousin Matt (Alex Russell), and Jordan's Steve. After the trio discovers a strange object that gives them telekinetic powers, they embark on a fun little spree to explore their newfound abilities. But things quickly take a dark turn after the socially awkward and chronically bullied Andrew begins using his powers for questionable purposes, eventually venturing into full-on supervillain territory.

The movie was not only a critical hit when it hit theaters back in 2012, but managed to gross $123.6 million on a $15 million budget, making it a surprise commercial success. Now, the film has re-emerged more than a decade later to reintroduce itself to streaming audiences, and it seems they're more than willing to make its acquaintance as "Chronicle" has flown up the Max charts.

Soon after the success of "Chronicle," there was talk of a sequel, with various writers being brought onboard to shepherd the follow-up. More recently, we learned that "Chronicle 2" was to be set 10 years after the original and feature women in the starring roles. Sadly, no such movie has yet arrived, and with no solid updates on its production, fans are left to wonder if "Chronicle 2" is happening. In the meantime, we'll have to content ourselves with revisiting the original, which is exactly what Max viewers are doing.

"Chronicle" hit Max on May 1, 2025, and languished on the servers for a few days before it rose, like its power-mad antagonist, from obscurity and hit the streamer's charts. According to FlixPatrol, a site that tracks streaming viewership numbers, "Chronicle" arrived on the Max charts on May 3, 2025, debuting in the sixth spot before falling to number nine the following day. On May 5, however, it started to climb the rankings once again, hitting number eight before jumping to number seven as of May 6. Whether it can continue its dominance remains to be seen, but if "Chronicle" is to hit number one, it's going to have to contend with some modern hits that are currently ruling the HBO charts.

At the time of writing, Nicole Kidman's steamy erotic thriller "Babygirl" is dominating the Max charts, while arguably the first great film of 2025, "Companion," is in the number two spot (as per FlixPatrol). As such, "Chronicle" has quite a way to go if it wants to take the top spot, but considering the Kidman thriller has been charting for 10 days and "Companion" for 15 days, perhaps it's time for a new Max champion to rise.

Such a feat shouldn't be too difficult to achieve for "Chronicle," considering it's not the usual dross we see rising to the top of these streaming charts. The movie currently has a very respectable 85% score on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics praising the original take on what was, even back in 2012, essentially an unoriginal superhero origin story. Back in 2012, /Film dubbed "Chronicle" a superpowered teenage riot, and most critics agreed, with many others highlighting the performances of the main cast.

It's also mildly tragic to see the excitement among certain reviewers for Josh Trank's career progression, with Entertainment Weekly's Owen Gleiberman writing, "Based on 'Chronicle,' it's clear that Trank has the right stuff to move up to big-budget fantasy movies. If he wants to, that is. In a lot of ways, he has already beaten the studios at their game." Sadly, that didn't quite pan out, but "Chronicle" remains a testament to the man's talents, and if nothing else, he's gotta be heartened to see modern streaming viewers rediscovering his best movie.