The South Korean drama Squid Game, which has become a global phenomenon since its release on September 17, has officially overtaken Bridgerton as the streamer’s biggest series launch ever.
According to Netflix, which is notorious for keeping its viewing data close to the chest, the survival drama has reached 111 million accounts globally and was the first show to reach more than 100 million when it premiered. The company says the 111 million number represents the number of Netflix accounts that have chosen to watch at least two minutes of the title. Netflix took official Twitter handle to reveal the news. The tweet reads, “Squid Game has officially reached 111 million fans — making it our biggest series launch ever!”
Squid Game plot follows a group of severely cash-strapped contestants who accept an invitation to compete in children’s games for a massive amount of money, only to find out that the consequence for losing is ‘death’. The hit No. 1 in the U.S., squid games has become the first-ever Korean series to do so. It’s held that spot for 21 days and counting, setting a new record for any non-English-language series. Interestingly, the series hit No. 1 in every country where Netflix has a top 10 list – 94 nations in all, from Brazil to France to India to Turkey and beyond.
Squid Game’s domination over Bridgerton was previously teased by Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos during the Code Conference on Sept. 27, where he revealed some of the viewing data from the platform’s most popular films and series. At the time, he revealed that Shonda Rhimes’ romantic period drama saw 82 million subscribers tune in for at least two minutes during its first 28 days on the platform, but that it was not likely to hold the top spot for long, much to his surprise. Earlier, Ted stated, “We did not see that coming, in terms of [Squid Game’s] global popularity.”
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