Roku Unveils Most Searched Movies and TV Show of 2023

Roku
(Image credit: Roku)

SAN JOSE, Calif.—Roku has announced that U.S. users conducted more than 1.2 billion searches on its streaming platform in 2023, up nearly 50% from 2023 and has unveiled the most popular searches for movies, TV series, actors and actresses. 

“The Super Mario Bros Movie” earned the most searched title of 2023 and “Yellowstone” ranked as the most searched TV series. 

“The Super Mario Bros Movie” also beat out every other movie, TV series, actor or actress to be ranked as the #1 most searched title on Roku in the U.S.

The most searched movies in 2023 were: 

  • The Super Mario Bros. Movie 
  • Puss in Boots: The Last Wish 
  • Avatar: The Way of Water 
  • M3GAN 
  • The Little Mermaid 
  • Top Gun: Maverick 
  • Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 
  • Transformers: Rise of the Beasts 
  • The Secret Life of Pets 
  • Twilight 

 The reigning champs for TV searches in the U.S. were “Yellowstone” (#1) and “SpongeBob SquarePants” (#2), which both held onto their spots from 2022, Roku reported. 

Of the year’s top 10, four are in the kids & family genre, and six are animated series, including “The Simpsons” and “Peppa Pig”.  

  • Yellowstone 
  • SpongeBob SquarePants 
  • PAW Patrol 
  • South Park 
  • Bluey 
  • The Simpsons 
  • The Chosen 
  • Gunsmoke 
  • Young Sheldon 
  • Peppa Pig 

The most searched actor was Adam Sandler, who starred in Netflix’s Murder Mystery 2 and also earned the honor of top searched actor in 2022 in the U.S. Searches for Sandler spiked in early April following the movie’s release, Roku reported. 

The most searched actors were: 

  • Adam Sandler 
  • John Wayne 
  • Tom Hanks 
  • Denzel Washington 
  • Clint Eastwood 
  • Jason Statham 
  • Nicolas Cage 
  • Kevin Hart 
  • Dwayne Johnson 
  • Tom Cruise 

Melissa McCarthy took the crown as Roku’s most searched actress of 2023 in the U.S. Searches for her spiked at the end of November, with Peacock’s original movie release of Genie. The top searched actresses were: 

  • Melissa McCarthy 
  • Sandra Bullock 
  • Julia Roberts 
  • Jennifer Lopez 
  • Jenna Ortega 
  • Doris Day 
  • Jennifer Lawrence 
  • Jennifer Aniston 
  • Reese Witherspoon 
  • Anne Hathaway 
George Winslow

George Winslow is the senior content producer for TV Tech. He has written about the television, media and technology industries for nearly 30 years for such publications as Broadcasting & Cable, Multichannel News and TV Tech. Over the years, he has edited a number of magazines, including Multichannel News International and World Screen, and moderated panels at such major industry events as NAB and MIP TV. He has published two books and dozens of encyclopedia articles on such subjects as the media, New York City history and economics.