Nearly a decade after its ostensible sunset, USA Network’s “Characters Welcome” era is having another moment.
Following the summer domestic ratings sensation created over the summer by breezy legal drama Suits, two more old USA Network shows, comedic drama Royal Pains and the show that first established the entire USA Network branding ethos, Tony Shalhoub’s “defective detective” comedy-drama Monk, have also found subscription streaming audiences.
Also read: ‘Suits’ a Massive Summer Hit? In a Global Streaming Business, Not So Much
In Nielsen’s most recent U.S. SVOD rankings (which cover Feb. 12-18), Suits, Royal Pains and Monk hold three of the 10 spots on the list.
The domestic streaming success of Suits has come with ubiquitous distribution — not only has it drawn large U.S. viewership on Netflix, where its brand lens fits rather perfectly, but it’s also streamable on Peacock.
Also read: NBC Lawyers Up With Another Reboot, Makes Pilot Order for ‘Suits: L.A.’
For its part, Monk can be streamed on Netflix, Peacock and Amazon Prime Video. Peacock's recent return to the scene, Mister Monk's Last Case: A Monk Movie, might also be aiding the Monk cause.
All three series ran during the vaunted era of USA Network’s “Characters Wanted” marketing campaign, which was initiated in 2005 under network president Bonnie Hammer, with Monk and its multi-time Emmy-winning star, Shalhoub, pioneering an ethos of quirky, character-driven comedic dramas, entertaining enough yet not requiring huge commitments from viewers.
Other USA Network shows from that era, including Psych and In Plain Sight, have generated buzz on Netflix before leaving the platform.
The broader resurgence of older titles on Netflix ties to a current retrograde trend of studio suppliers, including NBCUniversal, once again aggressively licensing their content to the streaming giant to generate cash.
More specifically, USA Network shows seem to travel quite well within the algorithmic transoms of Netflix's viewer recommendation engine.
