2023's Most-Streamed Original Series Is Available To Watch In Full Right Now
2023 proved to be a banner year for TV, boasting the debut of numerous well-received shows such as "The Last of Us" and "Poker Face," while also featuring the denouement of acclaimed series like "Succession" and "Barry." However, one unexpected TV show defied the odds to become the series with the most minutes watched in 2023. Not only that, but it actually beat out the previous record-holder for the most minutes of a program watched in a given year — even though it ended its run years ago.
According to a report from Nielsen obtained by Variety, the series with the most minutes watched in 2023 was none other than USA Network's hit legal drama "Suits." Due in no small part to the availability of "Suits" on several streaming services, including Peacock (which carries all nine seasons), the show starring Gabriel Macht's Harvey Specter and Patrick J. Adams' Mike Ross managed to clock in at 57.7 billion total minutes watched. Not only does that technically make it the most-streamed series of 2023, but it also trumps the record that the classic NBC sitcom "The Office" set in 2020 with 57.1 billion total minutes watched that year.
Nielsen's list of the most-streamed shows has some heavy hitters
While "Suits" may have taken the crown in 2023 as the most-streamed series of the year — and the most minutes watched for a series in any given year — it's not the only show that put out impressive numbers. Nielsen's list put the children's series "Bluey," which attained massive popularity by appealing to adults and kids simultaneously, at second place with 43.9 billion minutes watched. Third place went to the long-running procedural juggernaut "NCIS," as viewers spent 39.4 billion minutes with the show. The rest of the year's top 10 features "Grey's Anatomy," "Cocomelon," "The Big Bang Theory," "Gilmore Girls," "Friends," "Heartland," and "Supernatural."
As readers may notice from Nielsen's report, not a single streaming-original series managed to crack the top 10 most-streamed shows in 2023 despite the plethora of content released exclusively on services like Disney+ and Netflix. The streaming-original show that came the closest was Apple TV+'s uplifting sports comedy "Ted Lasso," which released its third and ostensibly final season in 2023. "Ted Lasso" amassed 16.9 billion total minutes watched, several billion short of the 22.8 billion tie between "Heartland" and "Supernatural."
More than anything else, the success of "Suits" and the various other programs on Nielsen's list suggests that viewers head to streaming services for more than just their original content. In fact, it seems that pre-existing TV shows have a solid chance of getting a second wind of massive popularity, even if their original runs have already ended. As for what the next "Suits"-like streaming phenomenon will be, only time will tell.