Netflix’s Surprise German Action Thriller Is Now One of Its Biggest Hits Ever
Exterritorial sees Barbarians alum Jeanna Goursaud deal with the kidnapping of her son, which exposes a conspiracy unlike any other.
Published June 17 2026, 11:09 a.m. ET
Streaming services have opened up a brand new world for media, and it seems that Netflix is going to be focused on cornering the action thriller market with its offerings. Be it the Extraction franchise that was headlined by Thor alum Chris Hemsworth, or the 2025's Exterritorial out of Germany, Netflix definitely has some of the best content that the genre has to offer.
Exterritorial has been receiving a lot of praise all over the world, backed by some of the strongest numbers that Netflix has seen for its films. Comparisons have been drawn to the Taken franchise; the film stars Jeanne Goursaud of Barbarians fame. Goursaud essays the role of a special forces soldier who was deployed to Afghanistan till 2017, whose son goes missing, pulling her into a conspiracy.
Exterritorial Has Managed To Rack Up 90 Million Views
Exterritorial managed to climb to the #4 spot on the platform in the category of Most Popular Non-English Movies globally. According to MovieWeb, the film was able to draw ~91.7 million views, with a little over 166.5 million hours viewed. Other films on the list included such hits as Under Paris and Troll, both originating in European industries as well.
The critical response for the film has been lukewarm, but FlixPatrol reports that the film ranked at #1 in 79 countries on May 2, 2025, just two days after its release on the platform on April 30, 2025. It racked up its 90 million views over twelve weeks, according to Men’s Journal.
Who Are The People Behind Exterritorial?
Jeanne Goursaud, who appeared in The 15:17 to Paris, leads the film She is joined by actors such as Dougray Scott (Hitman) and Lera Abova (One Piece). Behind the camera, the film credits Christian Zübert as its director and writer.
There has been much excitement around the film, with speculations online about what a sequel might look like. The mystery-action thriller has managed to accumulate enough eyeballs that a sequel might seem like a no-brainer. However, there has been no indication from Netflix that there is going to be some sort of sequel to the film. Director Christian Zübert made it very clear that the only way to return for a sequel is if there is a really good story that is worth exploring in the setting.