Netflix logo on TV. Image via Netflix By Collier Jennings Published Jul 7, 2026, 11:55 PM EDT Collier Jennings is an entertainment journalist with a substantial amount of experience under his belt. Collier, or "CJ" to his friends and family, is a dedicated fan of genre films - particularly science fiction, fantasy and comic book adaptations, not to mention all forms of animation animation. This stems from a close bond with his father, who introduced him to these genres via copies of X-Men comics and reruns of the original Ultraman series. Using his near-encyclopedic knowledge and bottomless love of genre, he's been able to tackle a wide variety of articles. Sign in to your Collider account Add Us On follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap Netflix is home to some of the most popular shows in streaming history, including its originals like Stranger Things or adaptations of beloved animated series like Avatar: The Last Airbender or One Piece . It's also notorious for how it treats certain shows, with breakout hits often canceled without warning. Some Netflix subscribers have also expressed their frustration that certain shows get canceled while others seem to continue without any issue (read: Emily in Paris ). However, Netflix is now facing another major issue with its shows, and it's entirely the streamer's own making .
A new report from Bloomberg shows a stark difference in viewership between the debut season of a Netflix original and its second season. Season 2 of One Piece lost over 30% of its audience, while Season 2 of Beef fell a staggering 70%. Perhaps the biggest indicator that Netflix's status isn't what it used to be is Avatar: The Last Airbender , which saw a 60% drop in viewership just a week after its premiere. The problem isn't quality, as most of these series have received higher ratings in their second seasons than in their debuts. So what's causing these massive drop-offs in viewership? The answer is simple.
STRANGER THINGS, Noah Schnapp, 'Chapter Eight: The Rightside Up', (Season 5, Episode 508, aired Dec 31, 2025). photo: ©Netflix / Courtesy Everett Collection Image via Netflix / Courtesy Everett Collection After Bloomberg's report dropped, writer/director Matthew A. Cherry laid out a simple truth on Twitter : the years-long gap between seasons is eroding people's interest in Netflix's shows . It's not hard to argue Cherry's point, as new installments of Netflix originals seem to be taking longer to come out. Both Beef and One Piece premiered in 2023, meaning that it took three years for a new season to drop. While other elements like the SAG-AFTRA/WGA strike of 2023 impact production, Netflix is also relying solely on the faith of its subscribers for viewership, and that faith is starting to wear thin .
Another side effect of the seasonal gap is that audiences' opinions on certain series begin to shift, and sometimes not for the better . Stranger Things is a great example of this, as the gap between seasons widened, resulting in a re-evaluation of what was once a beloved series. Many felt Stranger Things would have been better served as a miniseries, while others felt that its embrace of '80s pop culture was stagnating actual pop culture. Other fans felt that the show extending its episodes to feature length didn't do much for the story, leading…