View source for Wikipedia:2021 Top 50 Report

{{Top 50 annual report header|year=2021}}
{{Humor}}
== Annual Top 50 ==
''Based on data from the [https://pageviews.toolforge.org/ Pageviews tool] and prepared with commentary by:''
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2021 was mostly a year to finish what we couldn't have in 2020 due to the goddamned pandemic, between delayed sports events (football - [[Association football|the one actually involving feet and a ball]], although [[gridiron football|gridiron]] also shows up thanks to a dominating quarterback - and the Olympics) and movies (broadly construed, there are ''twelve'' superhero media entries on this list, not counting [[Black Adam (film)|future supervillain]] [[Dwayne Johnson]]; though there is also a place for the most famous fictional [[James Bond|spy]] and [[Godzilla|giant]] [[King Kong|monsters]], plus a science fiction adaptation and a science fiction actor).

We are not fully rid of COVID-19, but thankfully only the pandemic's overall article entered the list, as vaccination and conscious actions seem to finally slow down the disease ([[variants of concern|variants]] and [[COVID-19_pandemic_in_Brazil#Presidential_responses|irresponsible]] [[Boris Johnson|people]] aside). The political landscape saw the expected change in [[Donald Trump]]'s exit, and the unexpected regression in Taliban's return and US states trying to block racial discussion in schools. Reflecting three subjects that are constantly on the news, there are entries for the two richest men in the world (who are also in their new space race), the British monarchy (which had a bad year between exposés and death), and the recently deceased.

Completing it all there are plenty of Netflix-related subjects (including ''[[Squid Game]]'' and ''[[Bridgerton]]''), the three English-speaking countries that shape Wikipedia views the most, and three singers, two young ones and [[Freddie Mercury|a dead one]] that somehow [[Keep Yourself Alive|keeps himself alive]].

:{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Rank
! Article
! Class
! Views
! Image
! Notes
! Peak
|-
|style="background:#ADD8E6;" align=right| 1
| [[Deaths in 2021]]
| {{icon|List}}
| style=text-align:right;|45,385,914
| [[File:Skullclose.jpg|left|100px]] 
| After being robbed the top spot the previous two years by both [[Avengers: Endgame|a fictional]] and [[COVID-19 pandemic|real]] endgame, the list of deaths returns as the most-viewed article this year, with the article receiving over 45 million views.
| Apr. 9 (DMX and Prince Philip die)
|-
|style="background:#ADD8E6;" align=right|2
| [[Elizabeth II]]
| {{icon|FA}}
| style=text-align:right;|26,680,332 	
| [[File:Queen Elizabeth II - photo Emilio Esbardo.jpg|left|100px]] 
| If 1992 was her first [[annus horribilis]], then 2021 is a good contender to be her second. While a certain Netflix series that helped secure the Royal Family's position on this list did not air a new season this year, several notable events have occurred this year to secure Her Majesty's position this high in the Top 50. The biggest of them is the death of her husband [[Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh]], after being married to him for 73.5 years. She also reigns over one less nation than she did last year, as [[Barbados]] abolished its [[Monarchy of Barbados|monarchy]] to become a republic.
| Apr. 9 (husband died)
|-
| style="background:#DEDEDE;" align=right| 3
| [[Elon Musk]]
| {{icon|GA}}
| style=text-align:right;|25,569,324
| [[File:SpaceX CEO Elon Musk visits N&NC and AFSPC (190416-F-ZZ999-006).jpg|left|100px]] 
| After volunteering to once again write about this South African kajillionaire after doing so on last year's list, I realized far too late that I have no real interest in discussing Elon Musk anymore. I don't want to talk about him, I don't want to hear about him, and I most definitely don't want to hear him [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JF2Mf6HxIi0 say that someone "took a major L"] or [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrTXBFcvoMQ wear a Wario costume] in an ''SNL'' skit ever again. Even Elon Musk is tired of reading about Elon Musk on Wikipedia, hence why [https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1474452323011289094?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw he railed on this website for not being "curated" enough] after hearing about his appearance on this list. Maybe he would prefer to read something like ''[[CNN]]'', where [https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/29/investing/elon-musk-tesla-stock-sales/index.html it was revealed] that he owes billions of dollars in taxes, or ''[[The Guardian]]'', [https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/dec/14/elon-musk-time-person-of-the-year-worst-ever-choice-say-critics who wrote that] critics considered his pick as [[Time Person of the Year|''Time'' Person of the Year]] the "worst choice ever". That curated enough for you, Elon?

I must be alone in not wanting to hear as much as humanly possible about the man, though, if you couldn't tell from the fact that his is the third most-viewed article this year on the seventh [[List of most visited websites|most-visited website]] on the whole Internet. I mean, the guy is nestled in between the queen of England and the most popular Netflix series of ''all time''. If [[Oprah Winfrey|Oprah]] was somewhere on the list (and considering [[Oprah with Meghan and Harry|her interview with the royals]], I'm kind of surprised she's not) he would literally be the song "[[Billionaire (song)|Billionaire]]" by [[Travie McCoy]]. 

Yet what more is there to say about him? I could talk about his recent breakup from [[Grimes (musician)|Grimes]], a relationship that lasted far too long for anyone's tastes and amounted to a year's worth of her embarrassing herself with [https://www.nme.com/news/music/grimes-takes-to-tiktok-to-defend-elon-musk-again-i-am-not-my-bfs-spokesperson-3025309 passionate defenses of her '''hot''' hubby.] I could talk about his endorsement of [[Dogecoin]], which gave every straight man on the planet carte blanche to [[Mansplaining|mansplain]] [[cryptocurrency]] to everyone else, and rapidly fluctuated in response to Musk's every move (because, sure, let’s give him one more thing to control for his own benefit while convincing his impoverished fans it's for theirs.) I could even talk about all of the things he thinks it's okay to tweet, like responding to [[Bernie Sanders]]'s very reasonable request that "[https://twitter.com/sensanders/status/1459584250668331011 the extremely wealthy pay their fair share]" by being a hit dog and hollering, "[https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1459891238384115722 I keep forgetting that you're still alive]."

And unfortunately for Elon, this uncurated "dumpster fire" of a Wikipedia article will surely continue to get clicks since, unlike the [[Mark Zuckerberg|robots]] and [[Bill Gates|robot-makers]] that came before him, he revels in the attention that comes with being the wealthiest man on Earth, and won't stop getting it until the bitter end. What did that one space guy say? Oh, yeah. ''To infinity and beyond.''
|May 9 (hosted ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'') 
|-
|style="background:#ADD8E6;" align=right | 4
| ''[[Squid Game]]'' 	
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|23,129,704
| [[File:Cosplay of Squid Game Guards at Sutera Cosplay Fest 2021.jpg|left|100px]] 
| ''"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Fnmf7uuhJo&t=5s&ab%20channel=DATTEBAYO-94 Mugunghwa-kkochi pieot-seumnida.]"''
If people last year thought ''[[Tiger King]]'' would be the biggest Netflix hit in the 2020s, they've seen nothing yet as this South Korean series not only beat ''Tiger King''{{'}}s viewership, but has become the most popular Netflix show of all time. Because of this, it's highly unlikely anyone reading this hasn't at least heard of this show, but for those who haven't; It focuses on broke people playing children's games such as [[Red Light, Green Light|Red Light Green Light]], [[Tug of war]] and [[marbles]] for an enormous cash prize, with the horrifying twist of elimination meaning their deaths.

Following its release on Netflix in September, ''Squid Game'' became a worldwide phenomenon, gaining critical acclaim and bringing worldwide media attention to the majority of its cast, with [[Lee Jung-jae]], [[HoYeon Jung]] and [[Wi Ha-joon]] gaining worldwide fame for their roles. It's also become the top-viewed Netflix program in 94 countries, and has surpassed ''[[Bridgerton]]'' as the most-watched show in Netflix history.

It's also had a huge impact on internet culture, notably inspiring an ''SNL'' country music video starring <s>[[Freddie Mercury]]</s> [[Rami Malek]], a [[MrBeast]] recreation, and countless [[Dalgona]] Challenge TikToks. It's made an impact on Wikipedia too; on this report, it was number one for five weeks, something which previous Netflix hits such as ''Tiger King'' and ''Bridgeton'' failed to accomplish (the former didn't even make the Top 25 when its second and third seasons came out). With series creator [[Hwang Dong-hyuk]] in talks with Netflix for a second and third season, the red light is still not in sight for this South Korean behemoth.
|Oct. 3 (breaks Netflix records)
|-
| style="background:#C79AFF;" align=right| 5
| ''[[Spider-Man: No Way Home]]''
| {{icon|C}}
| style=text-align:right;|20,730,883
| [[File:Spider-Man - 9355655928.jpg|left|100px]]
| Undoubtably the most-anticipated movie of the year was the final film in [[Jon Watts]]' [[Marvel Cinematic Universe]] (MCU) ''[[Spider-Man in film|Spider-Man]]'' trilogy, which wraps up the character arc for [[Tom Holland]]'s [[Spider-Man|Peter Parker]] that began with ''[[Captain America: Civil War]]'' back in 2016. ''No Way Home'' sees Spider-Man accidentally break the [[Multiverse (Marvel Comics)|Marvel Multiverse]] wide open when trying to erase the world's knowledge of his identity (which was made public in [[Spider-Man: Far From Home|the previous film]]), causing villains from [[Sam Raimi]]'s [[Spider-Man (2002 film series)|''Spider-Man'' trilogy]] and [[Marc Webb]]'s ''[[The Amazing Spider-Man (film series)|The Amazing Spider-Man]]'' duology to show up in the MCU and wreak havoc.

''No Way Home'' is one of the darkest and most violent films to come out of the relatively light and upbeat MCU, but it's also a massive celebration of Spider-Man's cinematic history, filled with [[fan service]] and appearances ranging from [[Willem Dafoe]]'s [[Green Goblin]] to [[Tobey Maguire]] and [[Andrew Garfield]]'s incarnations of the Wall-Crawler. When rumors emerged that [[Marvel Studios|Marvel]] and [[Sony Pictures|Sony]] were bringing back old ''Spider-Man'' actors for ''No Way Home'', fans were driven into a frenzy, and only got more excited as the studios and actors scrambled to deny it. Fans got so ravenous that in late August they leaked the film's first trailer. Marvel/Sony's attempts at secrecy were also for naught as numerous set photos leaked showing things they didn't want shown ahead of release.

After months of intense anticipation, ''No Way Home'' was released in the U.S. on December 17. In addition to scoring some of the best reviews of any MCU film (which was good news for Marvel after ''[[Eternals (film)|Eternals]]'' released to a massive thud critically), it was the first post-COVID blockbuster to pass the $1 billion mark at the global box office. A sequel is already in development, though whether Holland will return is still unclear (as [https://www.gq.com/story/tom-holland-superhero-of-the-year-2021 he's said] he's unsure if he wants to continue playing Spider-Man).
|Dec. 17 (theatrical release)

|-
|style="background:#FFEC00;" align=right | 6
| [[Cristiano Ronaldo]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|19,563,673
| [[File:Argentine - Portugal - Cristiano Ronaldo.jpg|left|100px]] 
| {{anchor|6}}Without COVID interrupting the season like in 2020, CR7 had good views all year long and returns to the Annual Report in a very high position. At the age of 36, he's still one of the Beautiful Game's best, breaking many records regarding [[List of UEFA European Championship goalscorers|goals]] [[List of men's footballers with 50 or more international goals|scored]] and [[List of men's footballers with 100 or more international caps|games]] [[List of footballers with 100 or more UEFA Champions League appearances|played]], and made headlines upon his signing with [[Manchester United]], marking a return to the team of his breakthrough nearly 20 years ago. 2022 has another important landmark for Ronaldo to seek, namely [[2022 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA|qualify his Portugal to the World Cup]] and put him among the select few who appeared in five tournaments.
|Aug. 27 (announcement of Man U deal)
|-
|style="background:#ADD8E6;" align=right | 7
| [[Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|18,985,364
| [[File:Duke of Edinburgh 33 Allan Warren.jpg|left|100px]] 
| In Wiki, as in life, he followed his wife. The grand old Duke of Edinburgh (and, according to him, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDTmdrIVrqc&t=9s the world's most experienced plaque unveiler]) died this April. As Queen Elizabeth II's consort for 69 years, he was entitled to a state funeral but in typical no-nonsense style, he said he "did not want a fuss". Throughout his life, Philip was the definition of duty; he put aside his naval career to become what one could unkindly term the world's most professional house-husband. He worked to make his wife's job as fruitful as possible while standing, literally, in her shadow for longer than most people are alive. Besides standing loyal to the crown, he was a keen pilot, equestrian, and patron of around 800 charities. He founded [[The Duke of Edinburgh's Award|an award]] to encourage young people's personal development, completed by millions world-round. He was also known for his verbal gaffes (including telling a photographer to "take the fucking picture!"), and even inspired [[Prince Philip movement|his own religion]]!
| Apr. 9 (died)
|-
| style="background: #FF9DC4;" align=right |8
| [[UEFA Euro 2020]]
| {{icon|C}}
| style=text-align:right;|18,077,325
| [[File:UEFA Euro 2020 Trophy (cropped).jpg|left|100px]]
| The [[England men's national football team]] (a.k.a "England") made it to the final, not having gone that far in competition since they won the World Cup in 1966. With a bit of national pride from having decent vaccine rollout, little else to care about, and a brain on sports in anticipation of the Olympics, Football Fever took over the nation. They thought it was coming home! But it instead went to Rome, in the first of Italy's perhaps-surprising sporting victories this year (see: men's 100m sprint). And it was again the dreaded penalties that spelt England's fall.
| June 21 (final round of groups B and C)
|-
|style="background:#ADD8E6;" align=right | 9
| [[Joe Biden]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|17,661,839
| [[File:First photo posted to POTUS Biden Administration IG(cropped).jpg|left|100px]]
| Joe Biden has been commander-in-chief for almost a year. Compared to the scandals of [[Donald Trump|his predecessor]], Biden began [[Presidency of Joe Biden|his presidency]] with a high approval rating due to his success with the [[COVID-19 vaccination in the United States|vaccine rollout in the United States]]. However, he has since faced controversy over his handling of the [[Fall of Kabul (2021)|Fall of Kabul]], resulting in a dip in his approval ratings.
|Jan. 20 (inaugurated as President)
|-
|style="background:#ADD8E6;" align=right |10
| [[Donald Trump]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|17,069,058
| [[File:Donald Trump (51335306006).jpg|left|100px]]
|"[[Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye|Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye!]]"


After four years of scandals and fake news, the [[Presidency of Donald Trump|presidency]] of The Donald came to an end this year. His [[Attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election|claims of election fraud]] did not turn out well for him, as they led to the [[2021 United States Capitol attack|United States Capitol attack]] and Trump's subsequent second impeachment and being banned from every social media platform, including (sadly for him) [[Twitter]]. Trump skipped Biden's inauguration, becoming the first president since [[Woodrow Wilson]] not to attend their successor's inauguration. Since leaving office, Trump has frequently teased a presidential run in 2024.
|Jan. 20 (forgoes Biden's inauguration)
|-
|style="background: #FF9DC4;" align=right |11
| [[United States]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|16,838,160
| [[File:Usa.jpg|left|100px]]
| Make America Democratic Again ''(see above)''
|Jan. 20 (Joe Biden's inauguration)
|-
| style="background: #FF9DC4;" align=right |12
| ''[[WandaVision]]''
| {{icon|GA}}
| style=text-align:right;|16,738,895
| [[File:Scarlet Witch and the Vision.jpg|left|100px]]
| Upon watching the first two episodes, I enjoyed the "clip-show of sitcoms" style it had. I did wonder how they were going to keep that up once they got to the 2010s. Then a mystery emerged, and all the main characters (as well as the viewers) are invited to work out ''why'' those episodes were fake sitcoms. Each of the characters has different bits of information, and, yes, did it get a bit stringy as they finally reveal the villain? Sure. Did that undermine how cool the show was? Not really, especially with the villain being the highlight among a whole cast of fan favorites. Oh, and it gave us the first look at an all grown up [[Monica Rambeau]] ready for her ''real'' superhero debut in ''[[The Marvels]]'' at some point in the near-ish future!
| Jan. 14 (two episode debut)
|-
| style="background: #FF9DC4;" align=right |13
| [[2020 Summer Olympics]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|15,012,232
| [[File:Pedro Barros 1.jpg|left|100px]] 
| [[We Didn't Start the Fire|*''clears throat''*]]<br/>[[Caeleb Dressel]], [[Ma Long]], [[Marcell Jacobs]], [[Jakob Ingebrigtsen|Ingebrigtsen]]<br/>[[COVID-19 testing|Covid tests]], [[Sifan Hassan]], [[Jasmine Camacho-Quinn]]<br/>[[Faith Kipyegon]], [[Galal Yafai]], [[Boxing at the 2020 Summer Olympics|Who's that boxing?]], [[Lauren Price]]<br/>[[North Korea at the 2020 Summer Olympics|North Korea]], [[ROC at the 2020 Summer Olympics|Fake Russia]], [[Kellie Harrington]]<br/><br/>[[World and Olympic records set at the 2020 Summer Olympics|Record-breaking]], [[Yulimar Rojas|Rojas]], [[Karsten Warholm|Warholm]]-and, [[Sydney McLaughlin|McLaughlin]]<br/>[[Damian Warner|Warner]], [[Wojciech Nowicki|Nowicki]], and [[Gianmarco Tamberi|The]] [[Mutaz Essa Barshim|Guys]] who split [[Athletics at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Men's high jump|the prize]]<br/>[[2020 Summer Olympics Parade of Nations|Lonely flags]], [[2020 Summer Olympics#Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic|Stay with your team]], [[Great Britain at the 2020 Summer Olympics|England's]] got a [[Sky Brown|new queen]]<br/>[[Charlotte Worthington|Worthington]], [[Joshua Cheptegei|Cheptegei]], [[Soufiane El Bakkali|El Bakkali]], goodbye<br/><br/>We didn't win the medals<br/>But they've been regarded, since the Olympics started<br/>We didn't win the medals<br/>But all of these did win and we celebrate it<br/><br/>[[Lorenzo Patta]], [[Fausto Desalu|Desalu]], [[Filippo Tortu]]<br/>[[Elaine Thompson-Herah|Thompson-Herah]], [[Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce|Fraser-Pryce]], [[Briana Williams|Williams]] and [[Shericka Jackson|Jackson]]<br/>[[Lee Yang]], [[Wang Chi-lin]], [[Anna Kiesenhofer|Kiesenhofer]], [[Sena Irie|Irie]]<br/>[[Primož Roglič|Prim-ož Rog-lič]], [[Cycling at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Men's road time trial|He beat the clock]]<br/><br/>[[Tom Daley]], [[Matty Lee]], [[2020 Summer Olympics medal table|The USA's the winning team]]<br/>[[Logan Martin (BMX rider)|Logan Martin]], [[Liu Yang (gymnast)|Liu Yang]], [[Gymnastics at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Men's artistic team all-around|Russian]] [[Gymnastics at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Women's artistic team all-around|gym teams]], [[Shin Jea-hwan]]<br/>[[Erika Kirpu|Kirpu]], [[Irina Embrich|I. Embrich]], [[Julia Beljajeva|Beljajeva]], [[Katrina Lehis|Lehis]]<br/>[[Lee Kiefer]], [[Sun Yiwen]], [[Fencing at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Women's team foil|Three]] [[Fencing at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Women's sabre|fen]]-[[Fencing at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Women's team sabre|cing]] "Russian" wins<br/><br/>[[Daniel Ståhl]], [[Pedro Pichardo|Pichardo]], [[Neeraj Chopra]], [[Athletics at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Men's javelin throw|he can throw]]<br/>[[Massimo Stano|Stano]], [[Armand Duplantis|Duplantis]], [[Athletics at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Men's pole vault|boy, he's gone very high]]<br/>[[Viktor Axelsen|Axelsen]], [[Bakhodir Jalolov|Jalolov]], [[Baseball at the 2020 Summer Olympics|Japanese baseball]]<br/>[[Jean van der Westhuyzen]], [[Julio César La Cruz]]<br/><br/>[[Arlen López]], [[Roniel Iglesias|Roniel]], [[Andy Cruz]], [[Hebert Conceição|Conceição]]<br/>[[Busenaz Sürmeneli|Sürmeneli]], [[Benjamin Savšek|Savšek]], How do you say [[Jiří Prskavec (canoeist, born 1993)|Prskavec]]?<br/>[[Mete Gazoz|Gazoz]], [[Jang Min-hee]], [[Archery at the 2020 Summer Olympics|South Korea archery]]<br/>[[Svetlana Romashina|Romashina]], and, er, [[Svetlana Kolesnichenko]]<br/><br/>[[Steven Gardiner|Gardiner]], [[Ryan Crouser|Crouser]], [[Selemon Barega]]<br/>[[Andre De Grasse|De Grasse]], [[Jessica Fox (canoeist)|Jess Fox]], [[Isaquias Queiroz]]<br/>[[Annemiek van Vleuten]], [[Lasse Norman Hansen]]<br/>[[Matt Walls]], [[Niek Kimmann|Kimmann]], [[Harrie Lavreysen]]<br/>[[Jason Kenny]], [[Laura Kenny]], [[Great Britain at the 2020 Summer Olympics#Cycling|British cycling victor-ny]]<br/>[[Shi Tingmao]], [[Xie Siyi]], [[Diving at the 2020 Summer Olympics|double golds in div-ing]]<br/><br/>We didn't win the medals<br/>But they've been regarded, since the Olympics started<br/>We didn't win the medals<br/>But all of these did win and we celebrate it<br/><br/>[[Julia Krajewski|Krajewski]], [[Ben Maher]], [[Jessica von Bredow-Werndl]]<br/>[[Equestrian at the 2020 Summer Olympics|Sweden, GB, Germany, horse teams]]<br/>[[Romain Cannone|Cannone]], [[Koki Kano|Kano]], [[Cheung Ka Long]], [[Fencing at the 2020 Summer Olympics|swords and suits don't go wrong]]<br/>[[Field hockey at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Women's tournament|Netherlands win field hockey]], [[Field hockey at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Men's tournament|and Belgium in the men's game]]<br/><br/>[[Nelly Korda]], [[Xander Schauffele]], [[Golf at the 2020 Summer Olympics|golfing goes to USA]]<br/>[[Artem Dolgopyat|Dolgopyat]], [[Max Whitlock]], [[Daiki Hashimoto]]<br/>[[Gymnastics at the 2020 Summer Olympics|China get some more]], [[Gymnastics at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Women's floor|and USA on the floor]]<br/>[[Handball at the 2020 Summer Olympics|France win twice playing handball]], and we've barely touched the new sports!<br/><br/>We didn't win the medals<br/>But they've been regarded, since the Olympics started<br/>We didn't win the medals<br/>But all of these did win and we celebrate it
| July 24 (first day of competition)
|-
| style="background:#DEDEDE;" align=right| 14
| [[Afghanistan]]
| {{icon|C}}
| style=text-align:right;|14,093,839
| [[File:C-17 carrying passengers out of Afghanistan.jpg|left|100px]] 
| The Taliban are back in power following the Fall of Kabul on August 15, 2021.
|Aug. 16 ([[Fall of Kabul (2021)|Fall of Kabul]])
|-
| style="background: #FF9DC4;" align=right |15
| [[Dune (2021 film)|''Dune'' (2021 film)]]
| {{icon|C}}
| style=text-align:right;|13,968,158
| [[File:Dune 2021 transparent logo.png|left|100px]] 
| This movie - but none of its promotional material - touts itself as Part One. I mean, it did very well so I doubt that Part Two won't come, but you never know. It begs disaster, especially as this movie itself is the fourth attempt to adapt the 1965 novel ''[[Dune (novel)|Dune]]'' (no "part" subtitle).

Besides #5's star Zendaya, this movie has an ensemble cast of, er, everyone? Like, there are a dozen main characters. Lots of sand. And that isn't a stray observation: the hero comes from a water planet, so the sand is a lot of the story.
| Oct. 23 (after US release)
|-
|style="background:#8888ff;" align=right | 16
| [[Lionel Messi]]
| {{icon|GA}}
| style=text-align:right;|13,528,664
| [[File:Lionel Messi PSG.jpg|left|100px]] 
| Messi's year didn't get off to the best of starts, after he received his first [[red card (football)|red card]] in his club career, on Jan 17. Then his team suffered their worst [[Champions League]] performance in 14 years, getting knocked out in the last 16. However, Messi's fortunes improved, as he took a host of records: first player to score at least 20 (as well as 30) goals across 13 consecutive seasons in the top leagues, most appearances for [[F.C. Barcelona]], most decorated player at a single club (with 35 trophies) and most times as top scorer in [[La Liga]] (8).<p>Messi then went forth to compete in the [[2021 Copa América]], competing for his country, Argentina. At the tournament he would win the [[Golden boot]], break the record for most appearances on the [[Argentine national football team|Argentine team]] (150), and, most significantly, Argentina won the tournament, Messi's first major international title, and the countries first since 1993. Messi would later also take the record for highest South American international goal scorer, beating the record set by (possibly) the greatest and most famous player of all time, [[Pelé]].<p>After coming back from his victory in the Copa América, Messi was forced to leave Barcelona, with whom he had been contracted to for over 21 years, leading to a [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWq1pLDA3eQ highly emotional press conference]. Messi would move to [[Paris Saint-Germain F.C.]] for the next chapter of his career, where his team (currently) comfortable lead the league. Messi's year ended with a record seventh [[Ballon d'Or]].
|Aug. 10 (PSG deal)
|-
|style="background:#FFEC00;" align=right | 17
| ''[[Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings]]''
| {{icon|C}}
| style=text-align:right;|13,478,214
| [[File:Ten Rings Marvel No Text Logo.svg|left|100px]] 
|rowspan=3|It was the busiest year for the [[Marvel Cinematic Universe]], who had to compensate for pandemic-related delays by issuing four movies in six months (and that's not counting five Disney+ shows: #12, #44, [[The Falcon and the Winter Soldier|Captain America's friends]], [[What If...? (TV series)|a cartoon]] and [[Hawkeye (2021 TV series)|Hawkeye finally being given his due]]). In-between the two with returning Avengers (#5, #34), there were two films highlighting mostly obscure characters and offering new story paths to explore, while also facing opposition of China in spite of Asian influence in front and behind the cameras. Audiences and reviewers were very pleased with the mystical martial arts of [[Shang-Chi]], the Master of Kung Fu, and very split on whether the [[ancient astronauts]]  [[Eternals (comics)|Eternals]] fully delivered on their sci-fi epic ambitions. In any case, each made $400 million worldwide to remind us that people are happy to go back to theaters.
| Sep. 3 (US release)
|-
|style="background:#FFEC00;" align=right |18
| [[List of Marvel Cinematic Universe films]]
| {{icon|FL}}
| style=text-align:right;|13,457,662
| [[File:2014 Dragon Con Cosplay - Iron Man and Hawkeye (15120786291).jpg|left|100px]]
| Dec. 19 (''Spider-Man'' is released)
|-
|style="background:#FFEC00;" align=right | 19
| [[Eternals (film)|''Eternals'' (film)]]
| {{icon|C}}
| style=text-align:right;|13,292,272
| [[File:Eternals logo.png|left|100px]] 
| Nov. 5 (US release)
|-
|style="background:#8888ff;" align=right | 20
|''[[No Time to Die]]''
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|13,014,321
| [[File:The All-New Range Rover Sport and Daniel Craig - Global Reveal (cropped).jpg|left|100px]] 
| The most recent Bond film came out this year, with Daniel Craig uttering the iconic "Tha name's Bond, James Bond" for the last time. The next big question is: who will replace him?
| Sep. 29 (UK release)
|-
|style="background: #FF9DC4;" align=right |21
| [[India]]
| {{icon|FA}}
| style=text-align:right;|12,675,518
| [[File:Flag map of India actual control.png|left|100px]] 
| Is that Bollywood scandal still going on? I know they rounded up more presenters than anywhere else for Global Citizen this year. Bad weather. Pakistan. Modi. Sorry, I'm just listing again.
| Aug. 16 (day after [[Independence Day (India)|Independence Day]])
|-
| style="background:#C79AFF;" align=right | 22
| [[Tom Brady]]
|{{Icon|B}}	
| style=text-align:right;|12,634,826
|[[File:Second Photos 89 (50833233927).jpg|100px]]
| Could the quarterback's legendary [[National Football League|NFL]] tenure continue without the [[New England Patriots]]? We got a definitive answer on February 7, when Brady led the [[Tampa Bay Buccaneers]] to victory over the [[Kansas City Chiefs]] in [[Super Bowl LV]]. Brady was named [[Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award|Super Bowl MVP]] for a record fifth time, making him the first player to win the award for more than one franchise. He shows no signs of slowing down; during the 2021–2022 season, he became the fourth quarterback in NFL history to record a win against all 32 current teams, the sixth quarterback to have a victory against every incumbent NFL franchise, and the first quarterback in NFL history to record 600 touchdown passes.

[https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/06/tech/tom-brady-nft-autograph/index.html He also began selling NFTs].
|Feb. 8 (wins Super Bowl)
|-
|style="background:#FFEC00;" align=right | 23
| [[Diana, Princess of Wales]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|12,197,873
| [[File:PRINCESS DIANA flag (5112486207).jpg|left|100px]]
| 24 years after the fatal car crash of the "Princess of the People", her article earned three view spikes, two by association (when [[Oprah with Meghan and Harry|her son and his wife went on Oprah]], and when Prince Philip died) and one by cause ([[Martin Bashir]], already unpopular with [[Michael Jackson]] fans for [[Trial of Michael Jackson|obvious reasons]], was found guilty of deceit for what he had done to get [[An Interview with HRH The Princess of Wales|an interview with Diana in 1995]]). Somehow, there weren't so many visits with the release of ''[[Spencer (film)|Spencer]]'', a movie with [[Kristen Stewart]] as Lady Di during the divorce from Prince Charles. In any case, 2022 had the return of ''[[The Crown (TV series)|The Crown]]'', where [[Elizabeth Debicki|an enormous woman]] will take over as Diana.
| Apr. 9 (former father-in-law died)
|-
| style="background: #FF9DC4;" align=right |24
| ''[[Godzilla vs. Kong]]''
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|12,103,168
| [[File:KK v G trailer (1962).png|left|100px]] 
| Is there plot? Apparently. Did people just want to see and hear CGI spectacle and Dolby sound in a cinema after a year out? Absolutely.
| Apr. 1 (US release)
|-
|style="background:#ADD8E6;" align=right |25
| [[Charles, Prince of Wales]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|12,005,184
| [[File:Prince Charles Ireland-4.jpg|left|100px]]
| Charles inherited the title of Duke of Edinburgh following the death of his father, Prince Philip.
| Apr. 9 (father died)
|-
|style="background:#ADD8E6;" align=right | 26
| [[COVID-19 pandemic]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|11,828,906
| [[File:Coronavirus. SARS-CoV-2.png|left|100px]] 
|Even after 2020 ended, it's still [[It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)|the end of the world as we know it]] as this pandemic shows no sign of stopping just yet. This year saw the arrival of several [[Variant of concern|Variants of concern]], most notably the [[SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant|Delta]] and [[SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant|Omicron]] variants, which have contributed to rising cases and caused confusion via the [[World Health Organization]]'s usage of letters of the [[Greek alphabet]].
|Mar. 10 (anniversary of being classified as a pandemic)
|-
|style="background:#ADD8E6;" align=right | 27
| [[Taliban]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|11,446,997
| [[File:Taliban Fighters in Kabul, August 17 2021 (cropped).png|left|100px]] 
| This Islamist organisation was thrown out of power in 2001, but became back in power this August following the end of the [[War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)|War in Afghanistan]] and subsequent [[Fall of Kabul (2021)|Fall of Kabul]].
|Aug. 16 ([[Fall of Kabul (2021)|took over Kabul]])
|-
|style="background: #FF9DC4;" align=right |28
| [[Marvel Cinematic Universe: Phase Four]]
| {{icon|C}}
| style=text-align:right;|11,280,489
| [[File:Marvel Studios panelists (48471873997).jpg|left|100px]] 
| Post-''Endgame'' MCU.  Disney had claimed several dates for future releases and were happy to swap them all around in light of the pandemic, being one of the best-prepared failures-to-launch of the whole thing. It still felt like far too many came out this year. And every sign in town will tell you when the next one is out.
| July 14 (''Loki'' season finale) 
|-
|style="background:#8EE300;" align=right | 29
| [[Critical race theory]]
| {{icon|C}}
| style=text-align:right;|11,222,132
| [[File:No to racism.jpg|left|100px]] 
| The core anxiety goes back as far as the [[Scopes Monkey Trial]]: public schools have been co-opted by the liberal elites that want to corrupt ''your'' children. A few months ago, [[Fox News]] and [[Christopher Rufo|Republican strategists]] decided to start blaming a niche legal academic movement. This has been an unparalleled success, leading many states to [[Censorship of school curricula in the United States|ban discussion of race from classrooms]]. The controversy is probably also responsible for Democrats losing [[2021 Virginia gubernatorial election|Virginia's off-year gubernatorial election]] this November. 
|June 18 (joint statement opposing ban)
|-
|style="background:#C79AFF;" align=right | 30
| ''[[Zack Snyder's Justice League]]''
| {{icon|C}}
| style=text-align:right;|11,222,407
| [[File:Poster Zack Snyder´s Justice League.png|left|100px]] 
| After years of fan rallying, protesting, and/or bullying, [[HBO Max]] finally #ReleasedTheSnyderCut on March 18. The do-over of 2017's ''[[Justice League (film)|Justice League]]'' presents the [[DC Extended Universe]] (DCEU) crossover event exactly as director [[Zack Snyder]] had intended before he'd left the production due to a personal tragedy. The 2017 theatrical version had been completed under the supervision of former MCU architect [[Joss Whedon]], whose attempts to add humor and levity to Snyder's trademark darkness resulted in a jumbled, unsatisfying mess of a film that bombed with critics and audiences. (Allegations that Whedon's on-set behavior was abusive and unprofessional certainly didn't help matters.)

HBO Max gave Snyder an estimated $70 million to restore his vision, and a portion of that budget went to filming a new scene featuring [[Jared Leto]] reprising his role as the [[Joker (character)|Joker]] from 2016's ''[[Suicide Squad (film)|Suicide Squad]]''. And yes, Snyder made him say "[[We live in a society|We Live In a Society]]" for the hell of it. While some aspects of ''Zack Snyder's Justice League'' were mocked, like its excessive use of slo-mo, a ridiculous ''four hour'' runtime, and its 4:3 aspect ratio, critics largely agreed it was Snyder's best DCEU film and vastly superior to Whedon's version. The film was intended to mark the end of Snyder's association with the DCEU, but fans immediately began lobbying for a sequel, even if that's probably never going to happen.
|Mar. 18 (released on HBO Max)
|-
|style="background: #FF9DC4;" align=right |31
|''[[Bridgerton]]''
|{{icon|C}}	
| style=text-align:right;|11,179,080
|[[File:Madame Philippe Panon Desbassayns de Richemont (Jeanne Eglé Mourgue, 1778–1855) and Her Son, Eugène (1800–1859) MET DP-13442-001.jpg|100px]]
|A really popular Netflix show that was set in period costume days but was raunchy and modern. Some people didn't like that there were fictional black members of the aristocracy, I didn't like that (besides the raunchiness) I found it didn't meet my expectations. To be fair, it was sold to me as a great critique on aristocracy and race, and it isn't, it's a soap opera with petticoats. Many people absolutely loved it, I think it's based on some books, and it's obviously getting another season.
|Jan. 3
|-
| style="background: #FF9DC4;" align=right |32
| [[Black Widow (2021 film)|''Black Widow'' (2021 film)]]
| {{icon|C}}
| style=text-align:right;|11,175,925
| [[File:Wizard World Anaheim 2011 - Black Widow (5675034010).jpg|left|100px]]
| Probably my favorite of the seemingly-endless MCU movies that this year spit up.

Sure, most people wanted one of: an actual Red Room Natasha origin story; Natasha and Clint in SHIELD adventure; What Happened In Budapest; Dark and Moody adventure with the Winter Soldier. And in that sense it didn't deliver at all. Would it have perhaps been better with less post-''[[Guardians of the Galaxy (film)|GOTG]]'' comedy, like ''[[Iron Man 2]]'' level of comedy? Almost certainly. Was it the best standalone the MCU has done since ''Avengers'' came out? Well, ditto.

Also, star [[Scarlett Johansson]] brought a lawsuit against Disney for breach of contract regarding the multiplatform release, in a move possibly defining 2021 in its three core aspects: MCU movie; directly caused by the pandemic; and female empowerment, especially against a corporation.
|July 9 (US premiere)
|-
| style="background:#DEDEDE;" align=right| 33
| [[Kamala Harris]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|11,091,273
| [[File:Kamala Harris Vice Presidential Portrait (cropped).jpg|left|100px]]
| US Vice President Harris's article got the most views right after her momentous inauguration, but failed to attract even a sliver of the same amount of attention in the following months. Sure, Kamala Harris became the first woman with [[Acting President of the United States|presidential powers and duties]] (for 85 minutes) after President Biden underwent anesthesia for a colonoscopy – although I'm not sure why he couldn’t have kept his powers & duties while that was happening, seeing as how he would barely be the first US president to be asleep at the wheel – but that only happened for about an hour and a half.

Critics have complained that Kamala Harris's historic role as the first female  vice president, African-American vice president, and Asian-American vice president has overshadowed her subpar performance as all of those things, and it's not hard to see why. Most of her staff either hated working for her or left after growing to hate her – a trend that only worsened as the year came to a close – her approval rates were alarmingly low among American citizens, and she apparently spent most of her time in office being sidelined by the only individual with more political power than her.

As far as events that truly shook the nation, though, Harris was involved in very few, regardless of how busy her first year as VP may have been. She visited [[Southeast Asia]] to address [[China–United States relations|US–China tensions]], met with [[Narendra Modi]], told Guatemalan migrants not to enter the US, led a push for voting rights, and did a bunch of other stuff that failed to grab the nation's attention. Keeping an eye on leadership is always helpful, but it's doubtful that Harris made it onto this list because people were as tuned into what she was doing as they were with Biden. Her nondescript reputation is a step up from [[Mike Pence|her predecessor]]'s, I suppose, seeing as how his became defined by his comments advocating for conversion therapy. Then again, only one of them ever ended up in a Top 50 list, and it wasn't the one with [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wb7yPlCDwRk the fly in his hair]. Maybe Harris will do something groundbreaking in 2022, but until then, all we have is [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3lpFE19T78 this video]. We did it, Joe!

|Jan. 20 (inaugurated as VP)
|-
|style="background:#8EE300;" align=right | 34
| [[QAnon]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|10,983,896
| [[File:Jake Angeli (Qanon Shaman), seen holding a Qanon sign (cropped).jpg|left|100px]]
| We are more than a year out from the last post by Q (the author). While Q's theories—that Donald Trump was planning a righteous coup against the conspiring elites—have ''probably'' proven to be false (QAnon proponents believe in deep states and secret executions, after all), QAnon still has an outsized influence on American culture. [https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/27/us/politics/qanon-republicans-trump.html 15%] of Americans believe in the theory, and they are represented in Congress—and I'm not just talking about the guys who visited on January 6.
|Jan. 7 (day after [[2021 United States Capitol attack|Capitol attack]])
|-
|style="background:#C79AFF;" align=right| 35
| [[The Suicide Squad (film)|''The Suicide Squad'' (film)]]
| {{icon|C}}
| style=text-align:right;|10,864,812
| [[File:TheSuicideSquad.png|left|100px]]
| The [[Justice League]] wasn't the only DCEU property that saw redemption this year. In 2016, [[David Ayer]] made ''Suicide Squad'', and it was terrible. Jump to 2021, when [[James Gunn]] (director of Marvel's ''[[Guardians of the Galaxy (film)|Guardians of the Galaxy]]'' who jumped ship to DC after Disney temporarily fired him for some unsavory old tweets) made '''''The''' Suicide Squad'', a sequel/reboot/some weird combination of the two... and it was amazing! ''The Suicide Squad'' retains some [[Suicide Squad]] members from ''Suicide Squad'' (of course, Warner Bros. would never get rid of [[Margot Robbie]]'s [[Harley Quinn]]) but mostly follows a new set of characters including [[Idris Elba]]'s [[Bloodsport (character)|Bloodsport]], [[Sylvester Stallone]]'s [[King Shark]], and [[Daniela Melchior]]'s [[Ratcatcher (comics)|Ratcatcher]] as they attempt to destroy [[Starro the Conquerer]], a giant alien starfish.

Despite critical acclaim, the film underperformed in theaters thanks to a simultaneous HBO Max release, a release coinciding with the emergence of the [[Delta variant]], the poor reception of the first film, and confusion over whether it was a sequel, spin-off, or reboot. Nonetheless, HBO Max has greenlit [[Peacemaker (TV series)|a spin-off series]] starring [[John Cena]] as [[Peacemaker (comics)|Peacemaker]], set to premiere next year.
|Aug. 7 (after US release)
|-
| style="background:#DEDEDE;" align=right| 36
| [[DMX]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|10,768,416
| [[File:Academy Awards afterparty CUN DMX (headshot).jpg|left|100px]] 
| A [[Ruff Ryders|Ruff Ryding]], record-breaking [[East Coast hip hop|East Coast]] emcee who forced us to question [[Where the Hood At?|where the hood was really at]], reminded us that there was always [[Party Up (Up In Here)|a party somewhere, but mostly up in here]], and promised to [[X Gon' Give It to Ya|give it to ya, no matter who ya may be]], DMX passed away at only 50 years old this year due to complications brought on by a cocaine overdose. In his half-century here on Earth with us, the Dark Man pioneered a certain, self-explanatory kind of rap known as [[hardcore hip hop]], replete with shouting, growling, and even [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=be22lkEpZc0 a few barks here and there.] It started with his widely revered, [[RIAA certification|multi-platinum]] debut record ''[[It's Dark and Hell is Hot]]'' in 1999, and was expanded upon in [[Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood|four more]] [[... And Then There Was X|consecutive]] [[The Great Depression (DMX album)|number-one]] [[Grand Champ|albums]] that cemented him as one of the most important rappers to ever live.

Despite mostly being known for his impeccable rap skills, a good chunk of DMX's life was consumed by the oft-violent crime, both streetwise and otherwise, that he depicted in his own lyrics, making him a complicated and unpredictable figure. Also, remember that cocaine that I mentioned a few sentences ago? Both that and the crime tie into DMX's untimely passing, as his mentor, Ready Ron, got him hooked on crack cocaine at only 14 years old after secretly giving him a blunt laced with it. DMX's pageviews actually spiked twice this year, the first time being around April 4, when news that he had been rushed to [[White Plains Hospital]] after a heart attack began to spread. The following week was a tense one for fans, as his state only worsened, going from losing oxygen in his brain to going into a coma, until finally, on April 9, his multiple organ failures led to the death that put him on this list.

Most recently, it was discovered that DMX, unbeknownst to the rest of the world, recorded a gospel album in the late 2000s. With all of the gloomy, semi-Satanic imagery in his songs and videos, one wouldn’t be mistaken for forgetting that X considered himself a devout Christian. It begs the question: If there is a (Christian) God, what will He (or She or They or It) choose to do with someone as complicated as DMX?

|Apr. 9 (died)
|-
|style="background:#FFEC00;" align=right | 37
|[[Richard Ramirez]]
|{{icon|C}}	
| style=text-align:right;|10,550,849
|[[File:Richard Ramirez 1984 mug shot.jpg|100px]]
|Netflix has been a boon for [[true crime]] shows, which is reflected in how viewers use the "second screen" nature of Wikipedia for further research - [[Ted Bundy]] even managed to be [[Wikipedia:2019|the third most viewed article of 2019]]. And in the January release ''[[Night Stalker: The Hunt For a Serial Killer]]'', the subject was this utterly terrible human being - as listed on the article, "serial killer, serial rapist, kidnapper, child molester, and burglar" - that terrorized California in 1985, killing at least 15 people before being subdued by a mob and subsequently arrested, leading to decades in the death row before Ramirez died in 2013 of lymphoma. 
|Jan. 16 (after Netflix show)
|-
|style="background:#FFEC00;" align=right |38
|[[United Kingdom]]
|{{icon|B}} 	
| style=text-align:right;|10.375.194
|[[File:Order in Council, 5th November 1800 – illustration of the new flag of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (PC 2-157).jpg|100px]]
|[[Rule Britannia]], as the year managed to push the UK into the Annual Report alongside its two former colonies that always get in (#11, #21). There were notable British things in culture with the return of James Bond (#20), and in sports with among others, the English team that got to the continental finals (#8), [[Great Britain at the 2020 Summer Olympics|65 Olympic medals]] (#21), and [[Emma Raducanu|a tennis player]] that on September 11 [[Wikipedia:Top 25 Report/September 5 to 11, 2021|had more views]] than [[September 11 attacks|the tragedy completing 20 years]]. And of course, views came in thanks to the monarchy that is spread all over this list.
|Apr. 9 (royal consort died)
|-
| style="background:#C79AFF;" align=right | 39
| [[Dwayne Johnson]]
| {{icon|GA}}
| style=text-align:right;|10,159,288
| [[File:Dwayne Johnson (8557375098).jpg|left|100px]] 
| The [[WWE]] superstar turned box-office superstar had a big year, pandemic notwithstanding. A sitcom based on his life, ''[[Young Rock]]'', premiered in February, and his long-gestating passion project, the DC Comics adaptation ''[[Black Adam (film)|Black Adam]]'', ''finally'' started filming in April after spending over a decade in [[development hell]]. He starred in [[Jungle Cruise (film)|the film adaptation]] of Disney's [[Jungle Cruise]] ride, which topped the box office in July, and Netflix's ''[[Red Notice (film)|Red Notice]]'', which broke streaming records in November. He was also added to ''[[Fortnite Battle Royale]]'' in December.

And yes, I am now calling him "The Rock from ''Fortnite''" just to piss people off.
| Feb. 17 (after ''[[Young Rock]]'' premiere)
|-
|style="background:#FFEC00;" align=right | 40
|[[List of James Bond films|List of ''James Bond'' films]] 	
|{{icon|FL}}
| style=text-align:right;|10,028,697
|[[File:Aston Martin DB5, James Bond 05.jpg|100px]]
|Only this year the Marvel Cinematic Universe managed to surpass James Bond in the number of movies (although if you include [[Casino Royale (1967 film)|that parody]] and [[Never Say Never Again|that remake]], it's a tie [[Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness|until May]]), specially as the British spy managed to return for the 25th time around in ''No Time to Die'', after a six year absence caused by both production problems and a pandemic. [[Daniel Craig]]'s tenure is over, making him the one who lasted longer, even with less movies than [[Sean Connery]] and [[Roger Moore]], and the producers have stated that 2022, the 60th anniversary of the film series, will be the one where they will announce the 007th actor (and no, [https://www.polygon.com/22824347/new-bond-cast-british-man-barbara-broccoli it won't be an actress!]) to play agent 007.
| Oct. 9 (''No Time to Die'' premieres in the US)
|-
|style="background: #FF9DC4;" align=right |41
|[[George VI]]
|{{icon|FA}}	
| style=text-align:right;|10,018,254
|[[File:GeorgeVI.jpg|100px]]
|Another royal everyone decided to check in when Philip died. Spoiler: George is also dead. In fact, it was his death that made Philip consort. George's appearance is one of the more understandable ones; he and Philip got on very well, and worked closely both in military and royal life before George's death. It is strange to think about Philip being a senior statesman alongside a man that died so long ago - Philip got old, George didn't - but that was the strength of their manly bond.

I imagine a lot of the pageviews came from people wanting to learn more about said friendship after it was mentioned in all the documentaries of Philip's life that took over television following his death. The BBC never seem to get it right when royals die, either too much or too little coverage. Maybe they will have found the happy medium before the Queen goes (I had a weird dream, it has been on my mind), though I don't think anyone could claim even wall-to-wall [[Rule Britannia]] would be too much then.

So, to another Navy man:</br>
''When Britain first, at heaven's command, '' </br>
''Arose from out the azure main, '' </br>
''This was the charter of the land, '' </br>
''And Guardian Angels sang this strain''
|Apr. 9 (son-in-law died)
|-
| style="background: #FF9DC4;" align=right |42
|[[Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon]]
|{{icon|B}}	
| style=text-align:right;|9,973,291
|[[File:Prinses Margaret en Lord Snowdon op de tentoonstelling Museumplein, Prinses Marg, Bestanddeelnr 917-7709.jpg|100px]]
|Why is [insert member of the royal family] on the list? Well, people are still catching up on ''The Crown'' on Netflix as it spins into more modern times; Meghan and Andrew have been the subject of scandals and those clickthroughs are cheap; and Philip died.
|Apr. 17 ([[Death and funeral of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh|brother-in-law's funeral]])
|-
|style="background:#FFEC00;" align=right |  43
| [[Zendaya]]
| {{icon|C}}
| style=text-align:right;|9,875,760
| [[File:Zendaya for British Vogue in 2021 - 01.jpg|left|100px]] 
| It was quite the busy year for this former Disney star. She had\heard many monologues in ''[[Malcolm & Marie]]'', voiced [[Lola Bunny|a rabbit]] [[Space Jam: A New Legacy|returning to the hardwood]], appeared briefly in a two and a half hour movie (#15), and filmed the next season of the show which gave her an Emmy, ''[[Euphoria (American TV series)|Euphoria]]''. What else... ah, that movie she made with boyfriend [[Tom Holland]] (#5).
| Dec. 17 (release of ''No Way Home'')
|-
| style="background:#FFEC00;" align=right |44
| [[Loki (TV series)|''Loki'' (TV series)]]
| {{icon|B}}
| style=text-align:right;|9,860,570
| [[File:WonderCon 2015 - Loki cosplay (16427144544).jpg|left|100px]]
|  2021 gave us more Marvel TV originals than strains of COVID. And while the first Disney+ show being here is no surprise (#12), the second, ''[[The Falcon and the Winter Soldier]]'', barely missed the list, unlike this third - which started around the same time the MCU returned to theaters (#32). After all, bringing back [[Tom Hiddleston]] as the [[Loki (Marvel Cinematic Universe)|the petulant Asgardian God]] that has endeared fans for a decade was a winner, and his show even opens up the Multiverse that led to #5's massive success, also with variants on the protagonist. Albeit Loki's were quite different, including a woman and an alligator. And the complex story was full of cliffhangers, only we didn't expect one in the season finale that also announced a season 2 - considering how tight the MCU scheduling is, maybe don't expect a return until at least [[Kang the Conqueror|the show's overarching villain]] makes [[Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania|his film debut in 2023]]?
| July 14 ([[For All Time. Always.|season finale]])
|-
|style="background:#ADD8E6;" align=right | 45
|[[Jeff Bezos]] 	
| {{icon|GA}}
| style=text-align:right;|9,759,385
| [[File:William Shatner Photo Op GalaxyCon Raleigh 2021.jpg|left|100px]]
| He sent [[William Shatner|Captain Kirk]] (pictured) to space this year. And also flew to orbit and stepped down as [[Amazon.com|Amazon]] CEO, but better celebrate destiny being fulfilled in the final frontier.
|July 20 (flew to space in [[Blue Origin NS-16]])
|-
|style="background:#8EE300;" align=right | 46
| [[Olivia Rodrigo]]
| {{icon|C}}
| style=text-align:right;|9,673,015
| [[File:P20210714AS-1746 (51418861000) (cropped).jpg|left|100px]]
| This year, the star of ''[[High School Musical: The Musical: The Series]]'' made her breakthrough into mainstream pop music with the album ''[[Sour (album)|SOUR]]''. Most of the songs are about breakups, or possibly one breakup, or allegedly her splitting up with ''HSMTMTS'' co-star [[Joshua Bassett (actor)|Joshua Bassett]]. Musically, the album ranges from slow piano pop (like "[[Drivers License (song)|drivers license]]," which hit #1 in many countries) to punk-infused pop so similar to [[Paramore]] that it accidentally plagiarized ("[[good 4 u]]", which went #1 in fewer countries). In July, she visited the White House to advertise COVID vaccinations; hopefully, she's the reason why some TikTok sadgirls aren't dying of Omicron.
|May 16 (2 days after "[[Good 4 U|good 4 u]]")
|-
| style="background:#C79AFF;" align=right | 47
|[[Keanu Reeves]] 	
|{{icon|GA}}
|9,475,319
|[[File:Reunião com o ator norte-americano Keanu Reeves (46806576944) (cropped).jpg|100px]]
| The Internet's Boyfriend returned as computer hacker [[Neo (The Matrix)|Neo]], one of the roles that made him famous, in the long-awaited ''[[The Matrix (franchise)|Matrix]]'' sequel ''[[The Matrix Resurrections]]''. The film has proven divisive and was steamrollered by a certain Marvel flick (#5) in its opening weekend, but Reeves still managed to delight the internet by laughing at [[NFT]]s in an interview with ''[[The Verge]]''.
|Dec. 12 ([https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OK80eljWrs Verge interview] with [https://www.dailydot.com/debug/keanu-reeves-nft-laugh-twitter/ memetic laugh])
|-
|style="background:#FFEC00;" align=right |48
|''[[Ted Lasso]]''
|{{icon|C}} 	
| style=text-align:right;|9,394,740
|[[File:Jason Sudeikis (24405121174) (cropped).jpg|100px]]
|[[Apple TV+]] is far from the heights of Netflix, Prime Video or Disney+, but has already scored an award-winning show in ''Ted Lasso'', which further strains the line of what is "football": the title character is an American [[college football]] coach (played by [[Jason Sudeikis]]), who is hired to manage the sport he knows as "soccer" in the English [[Premier League]], in a move carried entirely out of spite but that somehow actually improves the team. ''Ted Lasso'' won many Emmys for its first season, including [[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series|Outstanding Comedy Series]], has released its second season and is already renewed for a third. Maybe I should give it a shot - it can't be any worse than the Emmy winner of 2019.
|Sep. 20 (wins Emmys)
|-
|style="background:#FFEC00;" align=right |49
|[[Freddie Mercury]]
|{{icon|GA}}
| style=text-align:right;|9,399,769
|[[File:Freddie Mercury at Sheraton Hotel Buenos Aires.jpg|100px]]
|[[Tie Your Mother Down|Get your party gown, get your pigtail down, get your heart beating baby!]] Yes, the iconic frontman of [[Queen (band)|Queen]] managed to slide back here, no matter if unlike the rest of this list he wasn't much in the news, aside from three landmark anniversaries: 75 years of his birth, 50 years of his band, and 30 of his death. And yet Freddie's fans kept on returning to his page for various reasons, such as [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2tMgWgIvcWm9l0n8_haoE0wNLWmz8ErJ Queen's YouTube issuing videos on their history] and [https://thehill.com/changing-america/sustainability/environment/544724-beloved-seal-named-freddie-mercury-dies-after a seal named after him dying]. We might've expected [[Betty White|the death that closed the year]], [[Britney Spears|the singer who fought for her freedom]], [[Charles Sobhraj|another one of those serial killers on Netflix]] and [[September 11 attacks|the event that started the 21st century]]. But even decades after he's taken his bows and his curtain calls, [[We Are The Champions|Freddie is still the champion, my friends.]]
|Feb. 7 ([https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/quee-doritos-3d-super-bowl-ad-matthew-mcconaughey-9520125/ Super Bowl ad]?)
|-
| style="background:#DEDEDE;" align=right| 50
| [[Scarlett Johansson]]
| {{icon|FA}}
| style=text-align:right;|9,389,888
| [[File:Sing 13 (29771943355) (cropped).jpg|left|100px]] 
| Despite a literally action-packed year for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, only one of its lead stars - #43 isn't the heroine of her movie - actually made it onto the list this year thanks to the one-two punch of her starring role in this year's ''Black Widow'' (#32), released in July, followed almost immediately in August by the birth of her son, Cosmo, with ''[[Weekend Update]]'' anchor [[Colin Jost]]. Hopefully [[The Fairly Oddparents|Wanda]] is on the way. 

The last time she was on this list was back in 2019, due to similar circumstances (a starring role in [[Avengers: Endgame|a Marvel film]] and an engagement to Jost), because if there are two things we as a society love about actresses, it's their ability to do cool tricks in impractical, skin-tight clothing and our ability to creepily pry into their private lives.

|Aug. 18 (gives birth to son)
|}

==Exclusions==
*For those who saw the [https://pageviews.toolforge.org/topviews/?project=en.wikipedia.org&platform=all-access&date=2021&excludes= Pageviews' most seen articles] and wonder about the differences: 
** That list does not include redirect views, which is an issue considering both renames and how people actually reach the pages - more than 300k views to Ted Lasso were through redirects [[Ted Lasso (TV series)]] and [[List of Ted Lasso episodes]].
** Articles with mobile views over 90%  ([[Tasuku Honjo]]) or under 10% ([[F5 Networks]]) are very likely to be automated views based on our experience and research of the issue.
** If the mobile views are not that high, but there is no reasonable explanation for so many views ([[Wikipedia]], [[Skathi (moon)]], [[Google logo]]), such anomalous entries are likely DDoS attacks or automated views and also get excluded. 
*** One such case was [[YouTube]], that while a mainstay of previous annual lists, ended up with a suspicious and unexplained rise of the number of daily views (from 60k to 80k). Parent company [[Google]] had a similar rise (from 20k to 40k daily) and is also excluded.

{{big|← [[Wikipedia:2020 Top 50 Report|Last year's report]]}}
[[Category:Wikipedia Top 25 Report]]
[[Category:Wikipedia Top 50 Report]]