Nic Cage’s $347 Million Movie Is Suddenly a Streaming Hit 21 Years Later

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As a cinephile looking back, I must say that one of Nicolas Cage’s finest heist movies has found new life as a streaming sensation, two decades following its initial premiere. This Independence Day weekend, it’s soaring up the streaming charts!

On July 6 in the United States, the movie “National Treasure” ranked 8th among the Top 10 most popular films on Disney+. It surpassed both “Stitch! The Movie” at #9 and “Captain America: The First Avenger” at #10. Other titles in the Top 10 include “Ironheart” (#1), “Independence Day” (#2), “The Sandlot” (#3), “Hamilton” (#4), “Snow White” (#5), and “Enchanted” (#6). The movie “National Treasure” features Nicolas Cage as a historian who embarks on a quest to find a hidden treasure following the discovery of a map concealed on the back of the Declaration of Independence.

It’s clear that the holiday weekend contributed significantly to the increase in streaming views for the movie “National Treasure.” Other films focusing on American history and patriotism have also been doing well on Disney+. The plot of “National Treasure,” with its character named Benjamin Franklin Gates and a treasure connected to the Founding Fathers and Freemasons, is deeply rooted in historical themes (while still taking quite a few creative liberties).

The U.S. Treasury was portrayed by a character named John Adams Gates, played by Sean Bean as the criminal mastermind and digger-up-of-hidden-wealth Ian Howe. Additionally, Diane Kruger and Justin Bartha took on roles as Dr. Abigail Chase and Riley Poole, two associates of Benjamin’s who lend their exceptional skills in history and unique abilities to help him uncover the legendary wealth.

Despite gaining enduring popularity as a cult classic, the film National Treasure was not initially well-received by critics upon its debut. It garnered mixed reviews, with the performances of Cage and Bartha being praised, but the film’s screenplay was often criticized for being weak. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 46% approval rating from critics, but a significantly higher audience score of 76%, based on over 250,000 ratings.

The movie titled “National Treasure” raked in $347 million at the box office, making it a hit, and this led to a sequel called “Book of Secrets,” released in 2007. Like its forerunner, the sequel received mixed critical reception but was financially successful as well. However, the franchise did not continue beyond these two films.

A National Treasure TV Series Followed in 2023

In 2023, Disney revived the National Treasure series by introducing new characters while maintaining the same storyline. The show titled National Treasure: Edge of History has Lisette Olivera playing Jess Valenzuela, a resident of Baton Rouge who uncovers that her deceased father was part of the secret group of treasure guardians initially revealed by Cage’s character.

Unfortunately for fans of “National Treasure”, the spin-off series “Edge of History” didn’t strike a chord with audiences, receiving a 49% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. Despite being one of Disney+’s most popular original programs during its first week, the show was cancelled shortly after it concluded airing.

National Treasure is now streaming on Disney+.

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2025-07-06 20:35