What are the most watched Netflix series of all time? (2023)
Have you ever wondered what are the most watched series on the most used streaming platform, Netflix? In this article we list the top 10 series in order of views, and we think that some of the positions will surprise you!
1. Squid Game
Coming in at number one is 'Squid Game' with over 146 million views. This Korean production centers on a group of 456 desperate people drowning in debt who are drawn into a bloody game of survival where they have a chance to win nearly $39 million if they make it through six challenges. While the show's genre isn't all that new, its visual production, relatable characters, and disturbing take on human nature have resonated with many audiences around the world.
2. Bridgerton
At number 2 we have Bridgerton, a series that has nothing to do with the violence of the first one, quite the opposite: love. (Apparently the world is divided into two well-defined types of people.) A total 82 million people have watched this show, imagine the entire population of Germany watching it. Due to its level of drama, Bridgerton could be likened to a soap opera, but with the production values of a movie. In the series everything is beautiful: the music, the photography, the dresses, the protagonists. The story is narrated in the third person by Lady Whistledown (voiced by Julie Andrews), a mysterious woman who is aware of everything what happens in English high society in terms of the search for love, happiness, dances and the social occasions of the time.
3. Lupin
At number 3 we have the French speaking series 'Lupin'. And it is not the only one in this classification that deals with good-hearted thieves in the best Robin Hood style. The series is inspired by Arsene Lupin, the white-collar thief from the books of the French writer Maurice Leblanc. However, the Netflix story follows Assane Diop (Omar Sy) who has the brilliant intelligence of the character and who seeks to survive thanks to what he learned in the Leblanc books that his father left him, before being taken to prison by a crime he did not commit. Assane thus becomes the spiritual disciple of the white-collar thief.
4. Stranger Things
At number 4 we have Stranger Things, the series that is a clear tribute to 80s Hollywood film productions. The costumes, the photography and the settings are the living image of what life was like 35 years ago. Regarding the most watched season of the series created by the Duffer brothers, the instalment focuses on a typical summer in Hawkins, with the well-known group of friends in full awakening love when Dustin discovers, in a radio broadcast, the Mind Flayer, a monster that will endanger everyone's lives.
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5. The Witcher
We have a slight suspicion that Henry Cavill and the female audience have something to do with the fact that 'The Witcher' is ranked number 5. All joking aside, the project is the adaptation of a one of the best sagas of fantastic literature, written by the Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. It has achieved international fame thanks to the video games developed by CDProjekt RED (before they made Cyberpunk 2077). The story is as follows: Geralt of Rivia (Cavill), a lonely monster hunter, struggles to find his place in a world where people often prove more evil than beasts. But fate throws him towards a powerful sorceress and a young princess with a dangerous secret. The three must learn to navigate together through an increasingly volatile and dangerous continent.
6. Money Heist (La casa de papel)
At number 6 we have Money Heist, or 'La casa de papel' in the original Spanish. The series deals with the spectacular assault, by a gang of criminals, on the National Currency and Stamp Factory and the Bank of Spain. The combination of the action, intrigue and thriller genres together with its attractive plot and the peculiar character of its characters have made it the most successful Spanish series of all time. As for the fifth season, the last: when it seemed that nothing could get worse, a new enemy arrives much more powerful than any of the previous ones: the army. What started as a robbery has now turned into a war.
7. Maid
At number 7 we have 'Maid'. This miniseries is inspired by the autobiography of Stephanie Land, a woman who had to put her dreams on hold to escape an abusive relationship and raise her daughter. His experience was written up in a notebook and a blog and ended up in the New York Times. Brought to the small screen by Netflix, 'The Housekeeper' recounts the vicissitudes of Alex (the extraordinary Margaret Qualey), a single mother who cleans houses to try to make ends meet while fleeing an abusive relationship and struggling to get out of homelessness and give her daughter, Maddy, a better life. The moving series, not without humor, offers a raw and motivating look at the resilience of a mother.
8. You
You is based on a novel of the same name. It premiered in 2018 on Lifetime, before moving to Netflix where it was renewed for a second season. You is the story of Joe Goldberg, a part time bookstore manager, part time serial killer. The show has a large fanbase and the performance of Penn Badgley as Joe has seem him nominated as one of TV best villains.
9. 13 Reasons Why
This show is based on a popular novel by Jay Asher which was released in 2017. The story focuses on Hannah Baker, a high school student who commits suicide after being bullied. The series begins when Clay Jensen, one of her classmates, received a box of tapes, recorded by Hannah after her death. On these tapes are the 13 reasons why she chose to end her life. This teen drama received criticism with how it treated the subjects of suicide and sexual assualt, and raised concerns that its popularity with a young audience could glorify suicide. Despite this criticism, 13 Reasons Why remains one of Netflix's most popular shows to date.
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10. Tiger King
There is no doubt that the viewers who have seen 'Tiger King' have been delighted with the most insane documentary series in Netflix history. The series has sparked great controversy around the world because it exposes a perverse business: animal trafficking in the US, specifically that of tigers. The production focuses on the tremendous feud between the eccentric cat trader Joe Exotic, known as Tiger King, and Carole Baskin, owner of a tiger reserve. If you haven't seen it yet, we don't know what you're waiting for! Never before has the saying 'truth is stranger than fiction' been so true.