Image via Ascannio / Shutterstock.com
The responsible thing to do this year was, incredibly, staying home and catching up on Netflix. American households have vigilantly done their part by streaming a spectrum of shows and films as the
coronavirus creeps outside.
In the US, Netflix noticed a newfound interest in “documentaries, reality TV, romance and stories from outside the US” in 2020 as viewers turned to its programs for a semblance of “love, escape and connection.”
Intriguingly, as exploring new countries had become practically impossible this year, a new form of “travel” transpired. “We traveled to different countries from our homes,” the streaming service announced in its ‘
What We Watched 2020’ report. As compared to 2019, foreign-language programs saw a 50-percent jump in views this year, with Spain’s
The Platform, Germany’s
Barbarian, and France’s
Rogue City leading this genre. Anime-viewing in the US was up more than 100 percent, and interest for K-drama picked up nearly threefold. Worth noting is that one of the most popular Netflix comedies worldwide this year was
Emily in Paris.
Audiences also escaped their own realities by living vicariously through other people’s lives with the
Floor is Lava,
Love is Blind, and
Too Hot To Handle reality television shows. They were also invested in documentaries like
Tiger King,
Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez, and
American Murder: The Family Next Door and
The Social Dilemma.
As they say, laughter is the best medicine. Viewers had their healing from comedies to put their minds off the chaos, especially during the election period. They turned to shows like
Hubie Halloween,
The Wrong Missy,
Space Force,
Holidate,
Kevin Hart: Zero F**ks Given,
Never Have I Ever and
Sam Jay: 3 In The Morning.
Scroll down to see the most-watched programs among US Netflix viewers in 2020.
Click to view enlarged version
Click to view enlarged version. Image via Netflix
Education: 13th;
Dear White People;
The Social Dilemma;
The Trial of the Chicago 7;
Crip Camp.
‘Travel’: The Platform;
Barbarians;
Kingdom S2;
Money Heist;
Rogue City.
Escape: Tiger King;
Floor is Lava;
Over the Moon;
Extraction;
Selling Sunset.
Comedy: Hubie Halloween;
The Wrong Missy;
Space Force S1;
Kevin Hart: Zero F**ks Given;
Never Have I Ever.
Romance: The Half of It;
Love is Blind;
The Kissing Booth 2;
Princess Switch: Switched Again;
To All The Boys: P.S. I Still Love You.
Sad movies: Miracle in Cell No. 7;
All the Bright Places 1;
The Lost Husband;
Hillbilly Elegy;
My Octopus Teacher.
[via
Apartment Therapy and
Netflix, images via various sources]