Science Star Mark Rober Is The Latest YouTuber To Get A Netflix Deal

Topline

Netflix has announced it will develop an educational family competition show with content creator Mark Rober, its second deal in a year with a popular children’s YouTuber, as the streamer leans into creating new family and kid-friendly content as a proven way to retain subscribers and boost engagement.

Mark Rober on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”

Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images

Key Facts

Former NASA engineer and YouTube star Rober, ranked at No. 8 on Forbes’ list of top-earning creators this year, will create and host a new competition series to debut next year combining entertainment and education, much like he aims to do on his social media accounts, where he boasts more than 76 million followers combined.

Netflix did not attach a dollar amount to the deal, but it’s the second the streamer has inked with a children’s educational content creator after signing Ms. Rachel to produce exclusive episodes in January.

That deal has paid off—”Ms. Rachel: Season 1” is inching up on a record for a Netflix show with the most weeks spent on its Top 10 list and is a prime example of how young children can be among the most important demographics for a streaming service.

As viewers, young children are more likely to latch onto a show or movie and rack up viewing hours by watching repeatedly, as evidenced by “Ms. Rachel”—Netflix has only four episodes, but the season was the seventh most-watched on the streamer in the first half of the year with 162 million hours viewed.

Children also hold tremendous sway over their parents’ choice of streaming subscription, with a 2023 YouGov poll showing 49% consider what children’s content is available on a platform before subscribing, almost equal to how many people weigh the platform’s cost before signing up (50%).

Kids’ shows, especially those classified as “dialogue-free” or “low-dialogue,” are also more likely to become international hits than their adult-oriented counterparts, media consultant Emily Horgan told the Los Angeles Times, and shows geared toward pre-school children, like “Ms. Rachel” and “CoComelon” on Netflix, have been particularly successful.

Get Forbes Breaking News Text Alerts: We’re launching text message alerts so you’ll always know the biggest stories shaping the day’s headlines. Text “Alerts” to (201) 335-0739 or sign up here.

Forbes Valuation

Rober is estimated by Forbes to have made $25 million in the last year. Ms. Rachel, whose real name is Rachel Griffin-Accurso, is estimated to have made $23 million in the same period.

Key Background

Netflix launched its dedicated children’s section in 2011 with acquired content from sources like PBS and Cartoon Network, then branched into original children’s programming in 2013 with “Turbo FAST,” an animated series based on the DreamWorks Animation film “Turbo.” Within two years, Netflix had made 14 original shows for kids and has only stepped up kids’ content production each year since. “Ms. Rachel,” “Peppa Pig” and “Gabby’s Dollhouse” were among Netflix’s most-watched titles in the first half of 2025, the streamer’s data shows. Later this year, Netflix will also start streaming “Sesame Street.” The streamer picked up the show after Warner Bros. Discovery said it wasn’t renewing its deal with the long-running program, and both new and catalogue episodes will soon be available on Netflix.

Surprising Fact

Netflix has found some of its biggest successes in adapting programming originally created for YouTube, by far the most popular platform for children. “Cocomelon,” for instance, started as one of the world’s most popular children’s programs (its flagship YouTube channel has 193 million subscribers) before becoming a Netflix show in 2022. It was the second-most-watched program on Netflix in all of 2024, after “Bridgerton.” Netflix acquired the streaming license to “Blippi,” a YouTube channel aimed at toddlers and young children with 25 million followers, in 2022 and announced its “Ms. Rachel” deal in January. The new Rober show, a name for which has not been announced, will premiere in 2026.

What To Watch For

More children’s content from Netflix. “Barbie Mysteries” will release new episodes Aug. 28. “The Twits,” a film based on Roald Dahl’s 1980 children’s novel of the same name, is set for release in October. The streamer will also be releasing three new Dr. Seuss animated series this fall: “Red Fish, Blue Fish,” “Horton!,” and “The Sneetches.”

Tangent

Across all streamers in the first half of the year, children’s programming accounted for a large piece of the pie, Nielsen data showed. The popular children’s cartoon “Bluey,” available on Disney+, was streamed for more than 25 billion minutes in the first half of 2025 as the most watched TV show in any category. “Spongebob Squarepants” also made the top-10 list of most popular shows. Six of the top nine most-streamed movies of the year so far are children’s titles, and they accounted for nine of the top 20 overall.