The advent of DVR and streaming has arguably made ratings less important than ever in the world of television, because just as many people are likely to check out the latest episode of their favorite show a couple of days later when they’ve got more time on their hands than they are to watch it when it first airs.
Streaming services in particular have always been very vague about viewership data, and the only time official figures are released tends to be when the project in question is an unqualified success. However, Nielsen have recently started tracking the ratings for shows that run exclusively on the various over-the-top platforms that are available, with the rankings typically and unsurprisingly dominated by Netflix content.
The latest numbers, though, reveal that Disney Plus subscribers have spent over a billion minutes watching The Mandalorian, and these figures only cover season 1 and the season 2 premiere. Meaning that over the last four weeks, the total will have risen drastically. The Star Wars series is the only entry in the most recent Top 10 which isn’t a Netflix title, too, reinforcing the company’s stranglehold over the marketplace, and you can check out the full list below.
- The Queen’s Gambit – 1.85 billion minutes
- The Office – 1.05 billion minutes
- The Mandalorian – 1.03 billion minutes
- Schitt’s Creek – 963 million minutes
- Holidate – 654 million minutes
- Grey’s Anatomy – 624 million minutes
- Criminal Minds – 620 million minutes
- NCIS – 552 million minutes
- The Haunting of Bly Manor – 535 million minutes
- Great British Baking Show – 530 million minutes
The last non-Netflix show to trouble Nielsen’s Top 10 was Amazon’s subversive superhero hit The Boys, so The Mandalorian should be commended for reaching third place. Of course, it also reinforces the severe lack of engaging original content available on Disney Plus, something the Mouse House has admitted it will actively be looking to remedy in the immediate future. And based on the popularity of season 2 so far, don’t be surprised if Mando and Baby Yoda’s latest adventure eventually manages to capture the top spot as well.