It was unclear whether or not Squid Game season 2 would be able to match the unbelievable viewership of the original, but it already broken one record for Netflix and has just broken another one on its way to being an all-timer.
Netflix has just announced that Squid Games season 2 racked up 68 million views in its premiere week, blowing by Wednesday’s previous record with 50.1 million views. Squid Game season 1 was not close to this as it took a long time to spin up with its viral success. Before this, Squid Game set a record by being the first Netflix season to debut at #1 in 92 regions for the service.
These new viewership numbers mean that Squid Game season 2 is already the seventh most popular non-English Netflix series of all time. It will almost certainly beat everything else soon as nothing in that list is close to Squid Games 265.2 million views. For reference, here is the top 10 all-time list, for any language, where Squid Game season 2 will no doubt place. #1-4 seems like the most likely landing point here eventually, though there is a huge gap from Wednesday to Squid Games season 1:
- Squid Game season 1 – 2.2 billion hours viewed, 265.2 million views
- Stranger Things season 4 – 1.83 billion hours viewed, 140.7 million views
- Wednesday season 1 – 1.72 billion hours viewed, 252.1 million views
- Dahmer – 1.03 billion hours viewed, 115.6 million views
- Bridgerton season 1 – 929.3 million hours viewed, 113.3 million views
- Bridgerton season 3 – 846.5 million hours viewed, 106 million views
- The Night Agent season 1 – 803.2 million hours viewed, 98 million views
- The Queen’s Gambit – 746.4 million hours viewed, 112.8 million views
- Money Heist: Part 4 – 710.2 million hours viewed, 106 million views
- Fool Me Once – 629 million hours viewed, 98.2 million views
Again, with 68 million views in a single week, it’s just 30 million away from already cracking the all-time top 10 list, and I would expect it to probably be #6-7 or so on the list in the next week after this one.
There’s more to report on Squid Game, but I will probably break that into separate pieces over the coming days (it is New Year’s Day, after all). Highlights include a leaked potential release date of season 3, and a rumor that a US A-lister may join the cast in a cameo for season 3. But we’ll see if that actually comes to pass or not. More soon, and we’ll keep an eye on these numbers.
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Pick up my sci-fi novels the Herokiller series and The Earthborn Trilogy.
