Views of Netflix film about J.D. Vance jump 1000 per cent after Donald Trump selects him as running mate

Viewership on a Netflix film has skyrocketed by more 1000 per cent after an announcement by Donald Trump.

Viewership on a Netflix film based on the life of US politician JD Vance has skyrocketed by more 1000 per cent after Donald Trump named his as his running mate.

Hillbilly Elegy, which is based on the Ohio Senator’s best-selling 2016 memoir, was adapted into a film by Netflix in 2020 and starred Gabriel Basso, Amy Adams and Glenn Close.

On Sunday, the film was watched a total of 1.5 million minutes. However, according to US analytics platform Luminate, that number increased to 19.2 million minutes – or an estimated 163,836 views – after Donald Trump selected Mr Vance to be vice-presidential running mate for the 2024 election.

Hillbilly Elegy stars Glenn Close and Owen Asztalos as a young J.D. Vance. Picture: Netflix

That’s a massive 1,179 per cent jump in viewership. Not bad for a film that had a limited theatrical run and received negative reviews – Rotten Tomatoes critics gave the film a 25 per cent rating.

The movie, which was directed by two-time Oscar winner Ron Howard, chronicles the life of Vance in his early years growing up in poverty in Middletown, Ohio alongside his parents, sister and grandparents Papaw and Mamaw (Close).

His troubled father left when he was young, in the midst of his mother Beverly’s (Adams) drug and alcohol addiction.

Stream Hillbilly Elegy on Netflix, available on Hubbl.

Amy Adams plays Vance’s mother onscreen. Picture: Netflix

“Seeing the way they talked and acted with each other was helpful,” Adams told Entertainment Weekly of meeting the family before filming began.

“There was a dynamic of being open and generous. We spoke to them individually, and they gave perspective on their story, where they were, and where they are now. That helped me see the complexities of the relationships and love that they have.”

Like Adams, Close also met with the family and the real-life Bonnie to help her get into character,

“Talking with the real J.D. was crucial,” she also told the outlet. “No matter how fierce she could be, they sensed that, underneath, she was a damaged person herself, but she had this great energy about her in a non-compromising way.”

Vance himself was an executive producer on the film and is proud that his story resonates with viewers.

Gabriel Basso plays an adult J.D. Vance in the movie.

“I think it speaks to a couple of things: first, that people are really curious about the anger and frustration of the white working class; second, that members of the white working class have been hungry to have someone tell their story,” he told the Wall Street Journal in a previous interview before Netflix bought rights to the film for a cool $US45 million.

Donald Trump says J.D. Vance is the “person best suited” to be his running mate in the 2024 US election. Picture: Drew Angerer/Getty Images/AFP

While the film initially got negative reviews, Vance’s book has sold 1.6 million copies to date.

It was on Monday that Trump revealed he had selected Vance as his running mate in the election.

“After lengthy deliberation and thought, and considering the tremendous talents of many others, I have decided that the person best suited to assume the position of Vice President of the United States is Senator J.D. Vance of the Great State of Ohio,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

The selection came one day after Trump survived an assassination attempt by a gunman at his campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, over the weekend.