Netflix’s latest hit series (NFLX), “Bridgerton”, has been officially renewed for Season 2 – and it couldn’t come at a more perfect time.
The news, which was announced on Thursday, was not so surprising given the series’ huge success. In fact, “Bridgerton” is the premiere of Netflix’s most-watched series to date, with 63 million families projected to have seen at least part of the program in the first four weeks, according to the company. (Warning: Netflix considers a ‘viewer’ to be someone who watches at least 2 minutes of certain content.)
The big hit was creator Shonda Rhimes’ first show for Netflix, after leaving ABC (DIS) for a five-year, $ 100 million deal with the streaming giant in 2017.
Filming is due to resume this spring in the UK, although one of the biggest challenges is filming in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
Recent restrictions have made it very difficult to shoot more intimate scenes – which have now become a viral staple of the drama series.
In addition to the hot scenes, “Bridgerton” also has hundreds of extras to help create the show’s ballroom parties – another family occurrence that could be compromised due to COVID-19.
Still, the renewal underscores Netflix’s impressive commitment to content, which it plans to launch at a rapid pace. Earlier this month, the platform announced that it would release an original film every week in 2021, and just this week crushed subscriber growth estimates in its quarterly earnings report.
Films like “Malcom & Marie”, starring Zendaya and John David Washington, have already received acclaim from the Oscars; while others, like “Don’t Look Up,” highlight the platform’s ability to attract A-list talent with a cast that includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Jonah Hill, Meryl Streep and more.
But, despite all the series and movies that will arrive on the platform in 2021, Netflix still suffered a great loss after saying goodbye to its number one series, “The Office”, on January 1. According to Nielsen’s streaming list, this show had almost 1.3 billion minutes of viewing on all 192 episodes between December 7 and 13 – making it the number one show on all platforms.
The classic ‘Dunder Mifflin’ now lives on competitor Peacock (CMCSA), and is really getting more views on that service compared to Netflix, according to new data from ReelGood, a streaming hub app that hosts more than 300 services on a place.
Among 2 million Reelgood users, “The Office” streams increased to 9.2% from January 1 to January 7, surpassing both “Bridgerton” and “The Mandalorian” that week on Reelgood’s list of 100 Most watched TV.
In addition, the number of Reelgood users with a Peacock Free subscription grew by 17% during the week of January 8 compared to the week of December 25, while those who had a Peacock Premium account grew by 5% in the same period.
The data suggests that “The Office” may be the main motivator for users who migrate to the platform – and yet another example of how things heat up in an already competitive streaming fight.
Alexandra is a producer and entertainment correspondent for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on twitter @ alliecanal8193
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