Netflix just dropped its latest batch of viewership data, and the numbers are staggering. According to the second edition of What We Watched, Netflix users devoured 90 billion hours of content from July to December 2023, matching the first half of the year.
Leading the charge is the apocalyptic film Leave the World Behind, which racked up an astounding 121 million views. Not far behind is the live-action adaptation of One Piece, dominating with over half a billion hours watched, translating to nearly 72 million views. The success of One Piece didn’t stop there; it also drove significant viewership for the original anime, adding another 50 million views.
Netflix’s strategy of ranking titles by “views” now mirrors its weekly Top 10 lists, providing a clearer picture of what viewers are binge-watching. This approach, however, separates series by season, giving an edge to Netflix originals and balancing the rankings against long-running acquired content.
Take Suits, for example. This legal drama took the streaming world by storm last summer, but its first season only ranks at No. 21 with 27 million views from July to December. In reality, all nine seasons of Suits (minus the ninth season in the U.S.) amassed around 146 million views, far outpacing many top-ranked titles like Leave the World Behind.
Other big hitters in the second half of 2023 include Dear Child, Lupin: Part 3, The Witcher Season 3, Sex Education Season 4, Beckham, Who is Erin Carter?, CoComelon Season 8, Virgin River Season 5, and The Lincoln Lawyer Season 2. Fan favourites like Wednesday, Red Notice, and Squid Game continue to pull impressive numbers, showing no signs of slowing down.
Netflix’s data reveals that non-English titles accounted for about a third of all viewership, underscoring the platform’s global reach. As Netflix continues to release these insights, expect more revelations about what keeps audiences glued to their screens.
