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Ahead of the 2026 Oscars this Sunday, Rotten Tomatoes has revealed the most popular movies of the past year — according to the site’s audience-based “Popcornmeter.”
While some might have expected Academy Award nominees like “Sinners” and “One Battle After Another” to lead the list, the actual fan-favorites may surprise you.
Keep scrolling for a look at this year’s rankings obtained by the Daily Mail.
‘Weapons’
No. 10 on the list is “Weapons” with a score of 85 percent on Rotten Tomatoes’ Popcornmeter.
“When all but one child from the same class mysteriously vanish on the same night at exactly the same time, a community is left questioning who or what is behind their disappearance,” reads the horror film’s synopsis.
The film scored one Oscar nod this year for its star Amy Madigan. Madigan earned her first Academy Award nomination in 40 years for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role.
She starred alongside Julia Garner and Josh Brolin.
‘Frankenstein’
Guillermo Del Toro’s “Frankenstein” not only wrangled nine Academy Award nominations this year, but also placed ninth on the best movies of the year list with its score of 94 percent on the Popcornmeter.
In the director’s 2025 film adaptation of Mary Shelley’s classic novel, Del Toro focuses on “Victor Frankenstein, a brilliant but egotistical scientist who brings a creature to life in a monstrous experiment that ultimately leads to the undoing of both the creator and his tragic creation,” per the synopsis.
The movie stars Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth and Oscar Isaac.
‘Eternity’
Unsurprisingly, A24’s “Eternity” made a splash with audiences and found its way onto the best movies of the year list at No. 8.
Starring Elizabeth Olsen, Callum Turner and Miles Teller, the romantic comedy earned a score of 90 percent on the site’s PopcornMeter.
The film explores the tough decisions one might be faced with when living “in an afterlife where souls have one week to decide where to spend eternity.”
“Joan (Olsen) is faced with the impossible choice between the man she spent her life with (Teller) and her first love (Turner), who died young and has waited decades for her to arrive,” a synopsis for the film reads.
‘Zootopia 2’
“Zootopia 2″ managed to fall into seventh place on the list, and got a score of 95 percent on Rotten Tomatoes’ Popcornmeter.
Starring Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman and Ke Huy Quan, the animated children’s movie is nominated for Best Animated Feature at this year’s Oscars.
The follow-up film follows detectives Judy Hopps (voiced by Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (voiced by Bateman) as they “find themselves on the twisting trail of a mysterious reptile who arrives in Zootopia and turns the mammal metropolis upside down.”
“To crack the case, Judy and Nick must go undercover to unexpected new parts of town, where their growing partnership is tested like never before,” according to the synopsis.
‘Predator: Badlands’
“Predator: Badlands” earned its place on the chart at No. 6 with a 95 percent audience-rating.
The sci-fi thriller, which stars Elle Fanning and Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, has fans calling it a “must watch if a fan of the predator movies!”
Set in the future on a remote planet, the movie follows “a young Predator (Schuster-Koloamatangi), outcast from his clan, finds an unlikely ally in Thia (Fanning) and embarks on a treacherous journey in search of the ultimate adversary.”
‘Solo Mio’
In fifth place on the list is Kevin James’ “Solo Mio.” The rom-com earned an audience rating of 95 percent.
“A wedding disaster leaves the groom stranded in Rome, heartbroken in the world’s happiest city. But with one determined local—and a few meddling vacation couples—in his corner, his ruined honeymoon becomes an adventure he never expected. Because sometimes heartbreak is just the first chapter of a better story,” reads the film’s synopsis.
“Touching romantic romcom, highlighted by gorgeous locations and two lovable lead characters. Great date night film that could be watched with the whole family,” one fan wrote of the film in a review.
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’28 Years Later: The Bone Temple’
Coming in at No. 4 on the list is “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple” with a Popcornmeter score of 88 percent.
As the fourth film in Danny Boyle and Alex Garland’s “28 Days Later” film franchise, Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jack O’Connell and Ralph Fiennes star in this continued story directed by Nia DaCosta (“Candy Man”).
The post-apocalyptic thriller picks up with Dr. Kelson (Fiennes) who “makes a discovery that could change the world as they know it — and Spike’s (Alfie Williams) encounter with Jimmy Crystal (O’Connell) becomes a nightmare he can’t escape.”
“In the world of The Bone Temple, the infected are no longer the only threat to survival — the inhumanity of the survivors can be stranger and more terrifying,” reads the plot synopsis.
This film follows the 2002 original, 2007’s “28 Weeks Later” and 2025’s “28 Years Later.”
‘Rental Family’
Brendan Fraser stars in the third best-ranked film, “Rental Family,” which follows an American actor (Fraser) “who struggles to find purpose until he lands an unusual gig: working for a Japanese ‘rental family’ agency, playing stand-in roles for strangers.”
“As he immerses himself in his clients’ worlds, he begins to form genuine bonds that blur the lines between performance and reality. Confronting the moral complexities of his work, he rediscovers purpose, belonging, and the quiet beauty of human connection,” the synopsis reads.
The movie scored a 96 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes’ Popcornmeter.
‘The Housemaid’
In second place was the psychological thriller based on Freida McFadden’s book of the same name, “The Housemaid.”
The film adaptation attracted a massive audience likely, in part, due to its star-studded cast which included Sydney Sweeney, Amanda Seyfried and Brandon Sklenar.
Audiences gave the movie a Popcornmeter score of 92 percent.
“Trying to escape her past, Millie (Sweeney) accepts a job as a live-in housemaid for the wealthy Nina (Seyfried) and Andrew Winchester (Brandon Sklenar). But what begins as a dream job quickly unravels into something far more dangerous — a sexy, seductive game of secrets, scandal, and power. Behind the Winchesters’ closed doors lies a world of shocking twists that will leave you guessing until the very end,” reads the film’s synopsis.
‘Nuremberg’
Taking the top spot on Rotten Tomatoes’ best movies of the year ranking is psychological thriller “Nuremberg.”
Starring Russell Crowe, Rami Malek and Leo Woodall, the film follows a US Army psychiatrist, who gets locked in a dramatic psychological showdown with accused Nazi war criminal Hermann Göring as the Nuremberg trials are set to begin.
Though the movie didn’t score an Academy Award nomination this year, it was rated 95 percent on the Popcornmeter.
“Wonderful movie! Would watch again. Russell Crowe deserves an Oscar for his excellent playing of Goring,” one fan wrote of the film.
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