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Newly released Netflix docuseries “Quarterback” takes viewers on an inside look at the lives of some of the league’s most-watched players’ off the gridiron. It’s the latest example of what co-CEO Ted Sarandos called “sports-adjacent” programming on Wednesday’s earnings call, and this one scored big.
Initial viewership of the series proved that football still reigns as an American favorite, and Netflix might not need to pay up for expensive broadcasting rights to profit from the national obsession. A total of 1.1 million households tuned into the premiere episode of the series in its first five days released, according to the latest Wrap Report for the week of July 10-16.
The report provides an exclusive first look at the most-watched movies and TV series from the past week across both streaming and linear television sourced from viewership trends collected from Samba TV’s panel of more than 3 million households drawn from over 25 million connected TVs, balanced to the U.S. Census.
Netflix’s decision to take viewers behind the scenes with some of the NFL’s most-watched players in its latest sports docuseries capitalizes on the shift of sports fans to streaming. The show was renewed for a second season, indicating that athletes on and off the field continue to pique the interest of mass audiences.
Following Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs, Kirk Cousins of the Minnesota Vikings, and Marcus Mariota of the Atlanta Falcons, the series blew past other recent sports programming on the streaming platform, garnering over five times the premier viewership of “Break Point” which highlights some of the most popular names in tennis. Cousins fans in particular showed up to watch the series, with households in Minneapolis overindexing by a whopping 217%. Additionally, higher income-earning households ($125,000-$150,000) heavily watched the premiere, overindexing by more than 20% compared to the national average.
In addition to “Quarterback” debuting at No. 4 on the charts in its inaugural week, Netflix also nabbed the No. 1 spot in streaming with action-comedy “The Out-Laws” drawing 1.5 million households within its first three days available to watch when it premiered on June 30. Viewership of the summer movie, starring an A-list cast including Adam DeVine, Nina Dobrev, Pierce Brosnan and Ellen Barkin, was driven by Gen Z (ages 20-24) and Millennial households (ages 25-34). Both younger demographics contributed to the burst of viewership in its premiere weekend, overindexing compared to the national average by 9% and 6% respectively. The film soared past other recent Netflix originals, including “We Have a Ghost” by 20%.
The streamer grabbed the next two spots on the charts. The sophomore season of legal drama “The Lincoln Lawyer” debuted at No. 2, while new sci-fi action-adventure thriller “65” came in third. The latest season of “The Lincoln Lawyer” had diehard fans going back into Netflix’s catalog to binge Season 1, which landed at No. 10.
Amazon’s Prime Video, Disney+ and Apple TV+ all earned programs on the most-streamed list this week. Prime Video’s “Jack Ryan” came in at No. 5, while “Secret Invasion” delivered for Disney+. Despite Disney CEO Bob Iger announcing that Marvel would pull back on content spending and creation for future franchises, Season 1 of Secret Invasion seemed to prove a sound investment.
On Apple TV+, the new Idris Elba thriller “Hijack” debuted before the Independence Day holiday weekend with 226,000 U.S. households tuning in over its first three days. That number jumped to 467,000 households watching through July 4, and continued to keep pace to score a spot on the most-watched list four weeks after its premiere.
“Suits,” which became available for streaming on Netflix last month, remains on the charts for another week. The publicity and buzz surrounding Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, who played Rachel Zane for seven of its nine seasons, is most likely a contributing factor in continuing to drive sustained viewership for the show that launched in 2011 but only recently hit Netflix’s library.
On broadcast television, NBC’s “America’s Got Talent” secured the No. 1 linear spot. Meanwhile, game shows continue to dominate, with episodes of ABC’s “Wheel of Fortune” and CBS’ “The Price Is Right” comprising half of the most-watched telecasts this week. ABC’s comedy quiz game show “Generation Gap” hosted by Kelly Ripa also landed on the charts. Created by Emmy-winning producers Jimmy Kimmel and Mark Burnett, the show pairs teams of contestants of different ages, challenging them to answer cultural questions from one another’s generation.
Meredith Brace is the chief marketing officer at Samba TV, a WrapPRO partner. Click here for more data and analysis from Samba TV.
