← Apex Mountain

12 Years a Slave

2013 · directed by Steve McQueen · 134 min
26,220 feet · Prominence
205th of 24,106 films scored
Not coveredThe 205th highest film on the mountain, and The Rewatchables has never done it.

How this film scores

Draw64

Lifetime worldwide gross $187m, re-releases included; about $265m in 2026 money.

Rank1,309 of 11,051In 201343 of 320

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise98

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics96 baseAwards98 signal → +2 lift

Oscars3 won Picture, Supporting Actress, Adapted Screenplay6 nominated Director, Actor, Supporting Actor, Costume Design, Production Design, Film Editing
Golden Globes1 won Motion Picture3 nominated Lead acting, Supporting acting, Screenplay
BAFTAs2 won Film, Lead acting4 nominated Directing, Supporting acting, Screenplay, Craft and other
How Praise works

Critics set the score; a tiered award record, Picture and Directing carrying the most weight, claims half the headroom above it. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since.

Legacy68

Judged directly: Acclaimed, Best Picture, lasting weight.

Verdict68 of 100IMDb8.1 from 786kWikipedia75k views a monthAge13 years

On the listsNational Film Registryevidence, not an input to the score
Scored beside it · 328 of 4,039 films judged

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 64 praise 98 legacy 68averages 77, placing it at26,220 ft
How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

Whose apex this is

▲ Michael Fassbender▲ Chiwetel Ejiofor

In these careers — elevation for this film

Chiwetel Ejiofor20,508 ftLupita Nyong'o20,231 ftMichael Fassbender20,159 ftPaul Dano18,398 ftBenedict Cumberbatch18,376 ftSarah Paulson18,238 ftScoot McNairy17,978 ftDouglas M. Griffin17,692 ftBrad Pitt17,661 ftPaul Giamatti17,656 ftAlfre Woodard17,650 ftKelvin Harrison Jr.17,647 ftMichael Kenneth Williams17,645 ftQuvenzhané Wallis17,645 ft