Netflix had no less than four shows that dominated the streaming service wars in early December, according to Nielsen streaming charts. Netflix’s breakout hit series Wednesday was at the top spot with 3.3 billion minutes viewed; Firefly Lane was no. 2 with 1.4B minutes viewed; Bullet Train was no. 3 with 1.34B minutes viewed (a significant jump from the week before); Harry & Meghan’s first three episodes took no. 4 with 1.26B minutes viewed.ย
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With that lineup, Netflix dominated the top 10 for streaming in early December โ with children’s program Cocomelon taking no. 5 with 945M minutes viewed; NCIS was at no. 6 with 885M minutes viewed, and Gilmore Girls was at no. 10 with 628M minutes viewed.ย
As for other streaming services: The White Lotus Season 2 finale boosted that series’ streaming audience by 37%, allowing HBO Max to crack the top 10 for streaming at no. 7, with 752M minutes viewed โ and that doesn’t even factor in the rest of HBO’s viewing platforms on Broadcast (HBO TV) and streaming (Hulu).ย Friends also brought a big audience to HBO Max as viewers settled in for holiday season binges, a viewership increase of 13% which put the series at no. 8 with 737M minutes viewed. Peacock got into the Top 10 thanks to Yellowstone, which brought in 726M minutes viewed, for the no. 9 spot.
Why Is Netflix’s Wednesday So Popular?ย
Wednesday is Tim Burton’s new vision of The Addams Family franchise, centered around Wednesday Adams. Wednesday is played by actress Jenna Ortega (You, X), and the storyline revolves around Addams Family parents Morticia (Catherine Zeta-Jones) and Gomez (Luis Guzman) deciding that Wednesday must attend their old boarding school, Nevermore Academy, after Wednesday homicidal antics get her booted from her local school. At Nevermore, Wednesday distracts herself from the dregs of school life by investigate a serial killer stalking the school.ย
In ComicBook.com’s review of Wedenesday, Adam Barnhardt says the following:ย
With Wednesday, a stellar ensemble combined with a dynamic tone crafted by Burton and Elfman results in a macabre shade of an all-too-familiar tale. Despite dealing with murders and monsters aplenty, Wednesday is, at heart, a story about growing up in a world unkind to the “outcasts” and otherwise. The minimal story is certainly relatable, given most of us-hopefully-have suffered through some growing pains at some point in our lives. Though it may have fared better at the height of spooky season, Wednesday still has the right stuff in place to make it a good watch at any point throughout the year.
All of the titles above are currently available on their respective streaming services.ย