The Cult Vampire Movie Flop Taking Over Tubi's Top Charts

In the endless discourse cycles surrounding the blessings and curses brought on by the Streaming Wars, there's one positive that absolutely no one seems to be upset about — new audiences are constantly discovering movies they might not have ever otherwise stumbled upon. This has allowed films that weren't box office juggernauts to find and develop a cult following, and even allow forgotten flops to find the viewers they were always meant to appease. The accessibility of streaming has helped breathe new life into countless titles, and there's now a new pathway for determining success: trending on a streaming platform's Top 10 list.

For instance, the free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channel, Tubi, is proving its audience base is on the right side of history by tuning in for the notorious flop, "Queen of the Damned." A time capsule of the new millennium of the highest order, the cinematic adaptation of Anne Rice's third installment of her "Vampire Chronicles" series thrust the series into a world of goth clubs, blue-wash lighting, and cast the Princess of R&B, Aaliyah, as the Great Mother vampire, Akasha. Critics hated it, audiences hated it, and Rice once said the movie had "mutilated" her book, but time has been kind to the maligned flick now that people aren't being such snobs about it.

Is "Queen of the Damned" a "good" movie? By all understandable metrics ... no, it is not. The plot is loose, Stuart Townsend's version of the vampire Lestat de Lioncourt has a singing voice that sounds like Jonathan Davis from Korn (because Davis actually provided the vocals), and Anne Rice's whopper of a 480-page novel is condensed to an hour and 45 minutes. However, a movie being "good" should have no bearing on whether or not you enjoy it, and it's clear that Tubi's trending list is lighting up for exactly that reason.

If "Bram Stoker's Dracula" is a gothic symphony, "Queen of the Damned" is the nu-metal garage band version; louder, sexier, and a little rougher around the edges. Sure, "Queen of the Damned" is less likely to be considered one of the best vampire movies of all time, but Aaliyah unquestionably gives one of the best vampire performances in this hot mess of a movie. Her portrayal of Akasha is transfixing, and she slinks through scenes like a cobra draped in jewels, chewing scenery (and men) with equal elegance. Although it takes nearly half an hour for her to appear on screen, her performance leaves a lasting impact. It's also impossible to untangle the real-life tragedy that surrounded the film's release, with her untimely death following production, imbuing the performance with tragic mystique in hindsight, elevating her to mythic status among fans.

The film's Hot Topic aesthetics and edgy soundtrack are often treated like a punching bag, but it's also what gives the film such a unique flavor in a subgenre of horror that can often feel a bit repetitive. "Queen of the Damned" became the cinematic personification of every angsty poem a goth kid who spent too much time on VampireFreaks.com in the early aughts wrote in study hall. It may not match the tone of Anne Rice's lush prose, but it does capture the emotional melodrama of the story in a way that speaks to the soul of its audience. Plus, where else can you watch a vampire rock concert that turns into a horny bloodbath? It takes itself just seriously enough to be ridiculous, and in a world of sanitized blockbusters, there's something admirable about a film that goes full diva without blinking.

Sometimes, being a little terrible is what makes something unforgettable.