The end of Squid Game and Stranger Things solidifies Netflix’s new era

[Karlston]

With both shows wrapping up in 2025, the streamer is in a pivotal moment of transition, one marked by ads and live events.

Stranger Things.

Image: Netflix

 

Netflix has a busy year of premieres ahead, but it might be most notable for what’s ending. As the streaming service continues to push into a new era full of live events, reality TV, and ad sales, it’s also saying goodbye to arguably its two biggest franchises, with both Stranger Things and Squid Game wrapping up in 2025. Once upon a time, tentpole hits like those series were pivotal for Netflix — people signed up for them and often unsubscribed when they went away.

 

But singular blockbusters aren’t as necessary for the company’s overall success any longer. And it’s possible we might not see anything quite like those two shows again.

 

Stranger Things wasn’t the first hit Netflix original series (that distinction belongs to House of Cards), but it was the first that pushed into mainstream culture in a big, sustained way. It was a reason to subscribe and something you couldn’t get away from; there are Stranger Things Halloween costumes and pet toys and Broadway shows. Even as the gaps between seasons became increasingly large, viewer interest still held strong: just ask Kate Bush, who was introduced to a whole new generation of fans thanks to season 4.

 

Squid Game took this formula and brought it to a more global audience. It was a surprise hit for Netflix — a nihilistic Korean thriller isn’t typically something TV execs drool over — but once it was clearly a success, Netflix jumped all over it. Squid Game expanded with a reality show, a video game, and multiple additional seasons, even as those expansions seemed to go against the spirit of the show itself. None of it seems to have diminished the franchise’s appeal, though: Netflix says that season 2, which dropped in December, had the best debut week in the service’s history.

 

And now that’s almost over. The third and final season of Squid Game will stream in June, and while Stranger Things season 5 doesn’t have a premiere date yet, Netflix says it’s coming this year. There aren’t any other shows on the service with quite the same cachet. So what comes next?

 

Squid Game season 3.

Image: Netflix

 

While it was a good early strategy to have singular shows that everyone wanted to sign up for, Netflix’s approach is now more expansive. For years, it’s been building out a catalog containing a much greater range of shows and movies (and, to a lesser extent, games), each meant to appeal to different audiences. “With more than 700 million people watching, we can’t just be one thing,” Netflix’s chief content officer, Bela Bajaria, said during a presentation to the press in Los Angeles last week. “We need to be the best version of everything.”

 

In practice, that looks like a mix of different types of content: sports and other live programming, reality shows, true crime docs, series aimed at specific local audiences, and crowd-pleaser movies like Happy Gilmore 2. The goal is still to find and retain subscribers, but with the all-important ad-tier, Netflix also needs to appeal to as broad an audience as possible to serve commercials to. You know, like cable.

 

It’s not that Netflix hasn’t tried to make other tentpole franchises. But none have stuck the way Stranger Things and Squid Game have. The Witcher got off to a great start but has been in a steady decline (and is wrapping up soon anyways), while franchises like 3 Body Problem haven’t become the kinds of prestige hits that Netflix was clearly hoping for.

 

Last Samurai Standing.

Image: Netflix

 

This is not to say that Netflix won’t still have ultrapopular shows. Bridgerton and Wednesday still exist, and the streamer will do whatever it can to keep Stranger Things and Squid Game alive with more spinoffs (though it seems unlikely any will hit the heights of the originals). It’s possible that upcoming international shows like Last Samurai Standing could have the same kind of surprise breakout appeal as Squid Game or Shōgun. With an audience as large as Netflix’s, it’s inevitable that there will be more success stories for scripted television.

 

But the importance of these series for Netflix’s business isn’t as pronounced as it once was, and thus, those that do break out won’t have the same impact. They’re just one piece of a complex puzzle that includes everything from celebrity boxing matches to weekly wrestling shows to, eventually, a World Cup. Splashy, expensive shows are how you sell subscriptions, but Netflix is increasingly in the ad business, and so the calculus has changed.

 

Having consistent new releases for all of its various demographics makes a lot of sense from that perspective — but without those shows that everyone seems to be talking about, Netflix also won’t quite be the same after this year.

 

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