For as many shows that Netflix guts after a single season, there’s plenty that go on to seasons two, three, and beyond. But there’s a catch to those additional seasons: less people are coming back to see these returning shows.
On Sunday night, Bloomberg published a story covering the trend of Netflix originals’ new seasons losing views in their first four weeks of release. Avatar: The Last Airbender, whose second season landed in late June, saw a 60% decline in week one views, while One Piece and Beef respectively dipped by over 30% and 70% when they came back earlier in 2026. First seasons for One Piece and Avatar were among the streamer’s most-watched shows in 2023 and 2024, respectively.
So far, Bridgerton is Netflix’s only series to return this year and not lose viewers with its latest run of episodes. There’s not been a major hit from its original slate since late January, which has reportedly had investors concerned. Already, the company’s been on the backfoot since it had to back out of acquiring Warner Bros., which it hoped would lead to more subscribers. There’ve been new users, but not a major surge that’s left the company pleased.
You can read Bloomberg’s full reporting here, which notes that Netflix’s previous slumps and its potential to recover from these new troubles. Even so, the causes of its woes aren’t hard to pin down. Whether it’s long waits between seasons, eight-episode runs, or improper marketing, shows are struggling to find an audience, much less maintain it so they can get renewed. This isn’t exclusive to Netflix, but much of the issues plaguing current streaming TV were seeded by this streamer—and as such, its flaws stick out more.
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