Nothing says ushering in the new year like attempting to break old habits. Netflix obviously didn’t get the resolutions memo, not even waiting until everyone had gone back to work before swiftly canning yet another ambitious series after one season. Yep, , and I am still mad. Showrunner Rachel Shukert talked to Vulture about the information (or lack of) regarding viewing figures or what this means for a creator trying to read the Netflix tea leaves. Now, the streamer seems to have lifted the veil somewhat, revealing the Top 10 and the number of hours tallied. Although, now that we have this information, those stats make the decisions the platform is making about the future of its shows even more confusing.
In its first week, 1899 had an impressive 87 million hours watched. I mean, that sounds impressive. However, Dustin Rowles over at Pajiba has noticed a pattern, theorizing that a live-action series in its debut season needs to hit 100 million hours in its first whole week to score a renewal. It’s the magic number that was comfortably met by Wednesday and Dahmer; a handful of others (like The Watcher and The Sandman).
The message seems loud and clear: Watch a new show in its launch week, or risk being left in the dark (excuse the pun) forever. Sure, there might be other variables at play, but in the streaming era, getting attached to characters over a single season comes with a risk.
Ultimatums like this are unlikely to boost viewership going forward, and there needs to be a middle ground between immediately mainlining a season and letting an audience grow. When a new season of Stranger Things drops, there is a rush to finish it that, in part, is necessary to avoid spoilers that will no doubt flood social media and IRL conversations. This immediacy isn’t as pressing when it is a new series, as you aren’t familiar with the characters or plot, so you might not feel inclined to burn through the entire season. There is such a thing as taking your time.
“What episode are you on?” has become a standard question when discussing a streaming show with friends, because we are accustomed to being at different points and self-policing what we discuss to steer clear of spoiling. Viewing habits vary greatly, and the list of shows on at any one time is illimitable, so being able to consume 10 hours of a brand-new offering in seven days isn’t entirely realistic—and I say this as someone who writes about TV for a living.
It is why a weekly release schedule for shows like The White Lotus keeps everyone on a level playing field and encourages live viewing. Not only do weekly releases give a show time to breathe in terms of its narrative, but it also means an audience can grow over time.
“But when a few weeks have passed and you haven’t watched the show yet, Netflix assumes you never will,” wrote TV critic Linda Maleh on Twitter, responding to the 1899 news. It feels counter-intuitive to give such limited wiggle room to reach an audience, particularly when TV is inherently a word-of-mouth medium. I didn’t start Dark until a short time before its third season came out, and no doubt there is a spike in viewers when multiple seasons are available. On that occasion, it was a recommendation via social media after mentioning other German shows I was fond of, like Babylon Berlin and Deutschland 83.
A series can find new viewers through positive comments, and a streamer can get stuck with a villain arc because of how it conducts its business. After this many occurrences, it is going to be hard to shake this level of cancellation notoriety. “It’s odd that Netflix hasn’t considered the consequences of having a reputation with viewers for canceling most of their shows. Viewers are going to stop bothering with Netflix shows altogether, knowing that their faves are just gonna canceled after one or two seasons anyway,” Maleh wrote.
Last month, I wrote about how 1899’s success pointed to Netflix’s strength in cultivating and producing successful international material. Its cancellation calls to mind a scene from Season 3 of Barry, which effectively skewers streamers when BanShee executive Diana Villa (Elizabeth Perkins) says, “I’ve been doing this for 30 years, and if there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s nobody knows anything except the algorithm.”
Given this pattern from Netflix, it is hardly surprising then that viewers and TV critics are beginning to question whether they should start something in the first place, when yet another ambitious series is ending without a resolution.
2022 was a year that Netflix faced backlash after backlash, and the new year is sticking to an unpopular plan.
