The fourth season of “Stranger Things” has broken records and turned the top 10 list from streaming giant Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) upside down.
What Happened: The first part of Season 4 of “Stranger Things” was released on Netflix over the weekend, going head-to-head with Disney+ title “Obi-Wan Kenobi” from Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS).
The highly anticipated fourth season came three years after it last hit the streaming platform.
The company said season 4 set a new Netflix record for an English-language series. Episodes from the fourth season were viewed for a total of 287 million hours, beating a previous record of 193 million hours for the debut of “Bridgerton” season 2.
Netflix released the first seven episodes of the fourth season on May 27. One item that might be helping the viewership hours is longer run times with the shortest episode coming in at over one hour and the part one finale (Episode 7) having a run time of 98 minutes.
The fourth season of “Stranger Things” ranked in the top 10 in 93 countries for Netflix in its debut week, and ranked first overall in many territories.
Along with this, the three previous seasons ranked in the top 10 English-language shows for the week, with seasons 1, 2 and 3 ranking third, fifth and fourth respectively.
The first season of the series ranked third with 38.1 million hours watched. The show ranked in the top 10 in 83 countries.
Related Link: Benzinga Ask: Netflix Vs. Disney, Are Fans More Excited For Obi-Wan Kenobi Or Stranger Things?
Why It’s Important: “Stranger Things” has been one of the most important original series from the streaming giant. It premiered in 2016 and is up for a fifth season.
The second part of season 4 of “Stranger Things” will premiere on July 1 with two lengthy final episodes.
The third season of “Stranger Things” ranks among the most-watched Netflix seasons of all time based on the first month of viewing. The fourth season could rocket up the leaderboard and pass series like “Bridgerton” and “Money Heist” for hours viewed. The show, however, has not yet beat the record-setting 1.65 billion hours watched of the Korean smash hit “Squid Game” in the first 28 days on the platform.
A Benzinga poll asking followers if they were more excited for “Stranger Things” or “Obi-Wan Kenobi” saw the Netflix title narrowly win. Disney has not shared any viewership metrics for the Star Wars title as of the time of writing.
Price Action: Netflix shares were up 1% to $197.44 on Tuesday.
Photo courtesy of Netflix
