Netflix‘s business model is pretty simple. Much like a broadcasting network, they license content produced by other companies and air it on their platform for a limited time. The more popular the content or the longer the airing time, the higher the fee the streamer has to pay.
For a long time, this was how Netflix operated. However, that all changed when the company – in a move that would alter the landscape of the entertainment industry forever – began to produce its own programming. With films like Beasts of No Nation and shows such as House of Cards, Netflix began to build up an impressive roster of stories that could be watched nowhere else except through them.
Why, then, do Netflix Originals sometimes leave the platform? Well, first and foremost, Originals leave because they’re not really original, meaning the streamer bought the film or show from another company and simply slapped an Original sticker onto it. Some unoriginal Netflix Originals that have recently left the company’s digital library due to licensing issues include The Killing, whose first few seasons can now be watched on Hulu, the first season of the BBC series River and the Argentinian show Estocolmo.
Licensing skirmishes may explain why the majority of Originals end up leaving Netflix, but sometimes the cause for departure can be a bit more interesting and sinister. In a few cases, the streamer is forced to remove a piece of their content because it does not comply with the laws of the government under whose jurisdiction it operates its business.
In the US, which, for better or worse, remains one of the fiercest protectors of freedom of expression on the entire globe, this usually doesn’t happen. However, other countries with different political beliefs are not as lax. Singapore, for instance, saw fit to remove Netflix titles like The Last Hangover, The Temptation of Christ and Cooking on High, because they did not meet the country’s standards regarding issues like sex, religion and drugs.
For the full list of all the Originals that have been removed, see below:
Due To Licensing
- The Killing (Seasons 1-4) – Removed August 2018 – Despite reviving the series, Fox opted to put the shows first three seasons on Hulu.
- River (Season 1) – Removed October 2019 – Only international distributor for the BBC series.
- Estocolmo (Season 1) – Removed November 2019 – Argentinian series that Netflix carried internationally.
- Happy Valley (Seasons 1-2) – Removed March 2020 – Another BBC series Netflix only distributed for a limited time internationally.
- Chewing Gum (Seasons 1-2) – Removed April 2020 – Netflix only served as the international distributor and lost the rights after a fixed period.
- Slasher (Seasons 1-3) – Removed April 2020 – Removed due to Kew Media Group going bankrupt could come back.
- Case (Season 1) – Removed May 2020 – Chilean series Netflix carried internationally.
- NSU German History X (Limited Series) – Removed July 2020
Due To Government Takedowns
- The Last Hangover
- The Temptation of Christ
- Cooking on High
- Disjointed
Tell us, have you been missing any of these movies or TV shows on Netflix? As always, make yourself heard down below.