‘Wednesday’ Is Netflix’s Third Most-Watched English Show In Just Two Weeks, Aiming For #1

Netflix may have its peaks and valleys, but 2022 is definitely a peak in many ways, at least in terms of how its series are performing. Netflix has stumbled upon another unlikely megahit, Wednesday, which is putting up numbers that may only have a singular rival on the service, Squid Game.

Netflix reports that Jenna Ortega’s Wednesday has already amassed 752.5 million viewership hours in two weeks, making it the third most-viewed English language series in Netflix history behind only Dahmer (856.2 million hours) and Stranger Things season 4 (1.35 billion hours), where both of those figures are for the first 28 days or four weeks of viewing. The ultimate victor, Squid Game, is at 1.65 billion hours, and unlikely to be topped.

But Wednesday may in fact become Netflix’s #1 English language series with a little luck here. Without question it’s going to surpass Dahmer, which was already viewed as an unexpected monster hit for Netflix just a few months ago. But it very well may creep up toward Stranger Things’ 1.35 billion hours. If you double its current viewership it would pass it in two weeks, but obviously these things are somewhat front-loaded. However, Wednesday already set the one-week record with a debut higher than Stranger Things, so it’s possible that’s where we’re heading, toward total, Wednesday domination.

No, Netflix has not announced season 2 of Wednesday yet, but it’s not even remotely a question at this point. The only real debate is whether or not they’ll greenlight it for one new season or two, and how much of a pay increase key figures like director Tim Burton and star Jenna Ortega can now demand to return. That’s likely what’s causing the renewal announcement delay, rather than any debate about whether or not Wednesday will get a second season. I mean they literally gave Dahmer two more seasons and that show ended with him getting beaten to death.

You will note that all three of these shows, the record-setters, all came out in 2022, and two of the three would not have been predicted as hits at this level ahead of time. As for its returning champion, it seems likely that we will not see Squid Game season 2 until at the earliest, late 2023 or early 2024, judging by what its showrunner has said about drafting a new season that he hadn’t previously planned for.

Wednesday, on the other hand, already has had ideas for season 2 and beyond, and it was never meant to be a one-off series, so it’s just a matter of when a new season will be announced, and what kind of raises everyone is in for. Whatever it is, it’s going to be worth Netflix’s while to pay out, as you do not see hits like this every day. Well, three times this year, but still.

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