What were the best movies and TV shows of 2021?

By Victoria McNally via SWNS

Spider-Man might’ve set a box office record in its opening weekend, but 2021 was still the year of Shang-Chi.

That’s the takeaway from a recent OnePoll survey that determined the best TV shows, movies, and other entertainment releases of 2021. 

Conducted from Dec. 13 to 17, the poll asked 2,000 respondents to identify the movies they’d seen – or had planned to see, in the case of recent premieres like “The Matrix: Resurrections”–  from a cross-section of the top-grossing films for each month.

Disney’s “Jungle Cruise” proved to be the most ubiquitous film; one out of every four movie fans polled (23%) have seen the theme park ride-inspired blockbuster since its theatrical release in late July.

But when asked which movies were “Best of the Year” material, more people cited “Shang-Chi: The Legend of the Ten Rings” than any other film on the list.

In fact, four of the top 20 movies of the year featured superhero characters from the same cinematic universe — “Shang-Chi” and “Black Widow,” which were produced by Marvel Studios, and “Spider-Man” and “Venom: Let There Be Carnage,” produced by Sony Pictures in association with Marvel. 

Respondents also wrote in their own picks for best movie, citing recent critically acclaimed titles like “House of Gucci,” “The Power of The Dog,” “Belfast,” and “Licorice Pizza.”

“Netflix has been releasing quite a lot of great films in the last year and I know will continue to [do] so,” one fan wrote.

Speaking of Netflix, the streaming service also dominated the “Best TV Shows of 2021” category with five different series featured in the top choices of 2021.

Not surprisingly, given its status as an overnight sensation, the Korean dystopian drama “Squid Game” took the No. 1 spot. 

Meanwhile, the final season of “Money Heist,” which Netflix first began distributing in 2017, stood out as the series with the most write-in votes. 

And despite its five Emmy nominations, “WandaVision” proved to be the least popular Marvel series on the list, trailing “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier,” “Loki,” and “Hawkeye.” 

TOP MOVIES OF 2021

1. “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’ (10.94%)
2. “Jungle Cruise” (10.20%)
3. “Spider-Man No Way Home” (9.59%)
4. [Tie] “The Suicide Squad” (9.39%)
5. [Tie] “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” (9.39%)
6. “The Matrix: Resurrections” (8.78%)
7. “Godzilla vs. Kong” (8.64%)
8. “Black Widow” (8.37%)
9. [Tie] “A Quiet Place Part II” (8.31%)
10. [Tie] “No Time to Die” (8.31%)
11. “Cruella” (8.10%)
12. [Tie] “Mortal Kombat” (7.90%)
13. [Tie] “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” (7.90%)
14. [Tie] “Halloween Kills” (7.83%)
15. [Tie] “West Side Story” (7.83%)
16. “Free Guy” (7.77%)
17. “Dune” (7.70%)
18. “Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It” (7.63%)
19. “Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard” (7.56%)
20. [Tie] “Ghostbusters: Afterlife”  (7.36%)
21. [Tie] “Space Jam: A New Legacy” (7.36%)

TOP TV SERIES OF 2021

1. “Squid Game” - Netflix (11.19%)
2. “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” - Disney+ (10.54%)
3. “Law and Order: Organized Crime” - NBC (9.68%)
4. “Yellowstone” Season 2 - Paramount Network (9.46%)
5. “The Sex Lives of College Girls” - HBO Max (8.66%)
6. “The Underground Railroad” - Amazon Prime (8.52%)
7. “American Horror Story: Double Feature” - FX (8.38%)
8. “Masters of the Universe: Revelation” - Netflix (8.16%)
9. “Impeachment: An American Crime Story” - FX (7.87%)
10. [Tie] “Loki” - Disney+ (7.73%)
11. [Tie] “The Walking Dead” Season 11 - AMC (7.73%)
12. “Equalizer” - CBS (7.44%)
13. “Tiger King” Season 2 - Netflix (7.36%)
14. [Tie] “The Morning Show” Season 2 - Apple TV+ (7.29%)
15. [Tie] “The Wheel of Time” - Amazon Prime (7.29%)
16. “I Think You Should Leave” Season 2 - Netflix (7.22%)
17. “Hawkeye” - Disney+ (7.15%)
18. [Tie] “Cobra Kai” Season 4 - Netflix (7.08%)
19. [Tie] “What We Do In The Shadows” Season 3 - FX (7.08%)
20. “Only Murders in the Building” - Hulu (7.00%)
21. [Tie] “Maid” - Netflix (6.79%)
22. [Tie] “WandaVision” - Disney+ (6.79%)