'Bridgerton' Is Now the Most-Watched New Series in Netflix's History

If you've been spending the summer getting reacquainted with your couch, we're betting we know exactly what you've been watching. Well, one show at least — because Netflix has revealed that 82 million households around the globe have been feasting their eyes on Bridgerton.

Those hefty viewing figures apply to the gossip-fuelled, 19th-century-set series' first four weeks, with Bridgerton launching on the streaming service on Christmas Day. And if 82 million sounds like a huge number, that's because it is. Indeed, Netflix has announced that the figure has catapulted Bridgerton to the top of its most-watched original shows ever. Yep, this episodic adaptation of Julia Quinn's novels has beaten out last year's favourites such as The Queen's Gambit and Tiger King, as well as the debuts of older series like Stranger Things.

So, if you keep seeing the show pop up in the top ten list included in Netflix's interface, that's because it has proven that popular — in every country except Japan, in fact. Obviously, when streaming service unveils its lineup of its most-watched programs and movies at the end of 2021, as it did in 2020, Bridgerton is going to feature.

That said, whether folks in that many homes worldwide have watched the whole eight-episode first season of the show yet is another matter entirely. Netflix's viewing numbers only capture how many of its subscribers have watched at least two minutes — yes, just two minutes — of the platform's movies and series. So, while a very large amount of people worldwide are aware that the show exists and have had a peek, they might not know the ins and outs of Daphne Bridgerton's (Phoebe Dynevor) quest to find a husband, her dalliances with the Duke of Hastings (Regé-Jean Page), the scandal in the Featherington household, all the other dramas that come with Regency London's marriage market and just what Lady Whistledown has been writing about. And, they may not have spent any time dreaming about wandering around the program's super-green gardens, either.

Nonetheless, all the attention has meant that Netflix is keen to keep the series going, with the company announcing that a second season will start production this year. An airdate yet to be revealed, however.

Check out the trailer for the show's first season below:

 The first season of Bridgerton is available to stream now via Netflix. The show's second season has been announced, but a release date is yet to be revealed.

Top image: Liam Daniel/Netflix.