Most streamed shows of 2022 / Peacock hits 20M subs / "Succession" S4 first look / Critical Role signs Amazon deal

Plus today's calendar, "Party Down" revival teaser, "Titans" and "Doom Patrol" to end, "Puppy Bowl" WBD simulcast, and more

Inside.com Part of   Network January 26, 2023

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Nielsen released its chart of 2022's most popular streaming content in the US, with Season 4 of Netflix's "Stranger Things" topping the list. "Stranger Things" was streamed for around 52 billion minutes in 2022, the largest audience for any single film or series since "The Office" hit 57.1 billion minutes in 2020 (thanks to a major lift from the COVID lockdown). More: "Stranger Things" hit its milestone based on just 34 total episodes, while "The Office" had 192 episodes available to stream. According to Netflix, "Stranger Things" also holds the record for the most-watched English-language series during its first month of release, with 1.35 billion hours viewed worldwide. "Stranger Things" is followed on the list by the CBS crime drama series "NCIS"; library episodes were viewed for 38.1 billion minutes on Netflix. The wildly popular animated kids series "CoComelon" came it at #3 with 37.8 billion minutes, followed by Netflix's "Ozark," and Disney+'s "Encanto," the year's most-streamed movie. In total, Nielsen reported that Americans streamed around 19.4 million years of content in 2022, up 27% from 2021's count. VARIETY

Comcast reported its earnings for the final quarter of 2022, noting that Peacock grew substantially in both subscribers and revenue. The streaming platform added around 5 million US subscribers in Q4, surpassing the 20 million overall mark. More: Comcast executives estimate that the company's losses on Peacock will hit their peak in 2023, at around $3 billion. Excluding the World Cup, NBCUniversal ad revenue was down in Q4 due to a softening ad market. NBCU's quarterly losses related to Peacock hit around $978 million. Comcast also disclosed $638 million in severance costs, a total that's $541 million higher than the same period in 2021; these cuts were mostly to the company's cable systems division. Universal's theatrical revenue in Q4 was way up, with boosts from the holiday-themed action film "Violent Night," the horror sequel "Halloween Ends," and the DreamWorks animated adventure-comedy "Puss in Boots: The Last Wish." HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

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DAILY CALENDAR THURSDAY, JANUARY 26 POKER FACE: Episodic mystery comedy-drama series, created by "Knives Out" filmmaker Rian Johnson. Natasha Lyonne stars as casino worker Charlie Cale, who has an uncanny ability to determine when someone is lying. Each episode finds Charlie solving a new case featuring an original ensemble of characters. Guest stars include Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Benjamin Bratt, Stephanie Hsu, Adrien Brody, Lil Rel Howery, Judith Light, Nick Nolte, Ellen Barkin, Chloë Sevigny, Hong Chau, and Tim Meadows. [Peacock] THE 1619 PROJECT: Six-part docuseries expanding on the New York Times Magazine series from Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones, which reframes US history through the narrative lens of slavery. Each episode is based on an essay from "The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story," and examines the impact of historical slavery on modern American life. Hannah-Jones hosts and executive produced. [Hulu] TEEN WOLF: THE MOVIE: Supernatural teen drama, continuing the story from the classic MTV series, which in turn was inspired by the 1985 film. Actors Tyler Posey, Crystal Reed, Tyler Hoechlin, Holland Roden, Colton Haynes, and Shelley Hennig reprise their roles; Russell Mulcahy ("Highlander") directed. [Paramount+] WOLF PACK: Debut YA dark fantasy-drama series from "Teen Wolf" vet Jeff Davis, based on the book by Edo van Belkom, about two teenagers who are transformed into werewolves after being caught in a wildfire. Sarah Michelle Gellar, Rodrigo Santoro, Armani Jackson, Bella Shepard, Chloe Rose Robertson, and Tyler Lawrence Gray co-star. [Paramount+] CLEAN SWEEP: Six-part crime thriller from Ireland, starring Charlene McKenna ("Peaky Blinders") as a housewife and mother of three who kills an old acquaintance after he threatens to expose dark secrets from their past. Barry Ward co-stars; "Preacher" writer Gary Tieche created. [Sundance Now] THE LAIR: 2022 action-horror film from co-writer director Neil Marshall ("The Descent"). Charlotte Kirk (who co-wrote the script with Marshall) stars as a Royal Air Force pilot who's shot down over Afghanistan, then takes refuge in a bunker filled with monsters designed for use as biological weapons. [Shudder] DANIEL SPELLBOUND: The animated fantasy-adventure series centers on a teen (Alex Barima) tracking down secret, powerful items on behalf of magicians, who remain hidden from the rest of society. Season 2 hits Netflix today. [Netflix] RECORD OF RAGNAROK: Anime series based on the manga by Shinya Umemura, Takumi Fukui, and Ajichika, which in turn was inspired by Norse mythology. It's set during a fighting tournament hosted by the Gods Council to determine the fate of humanity. Season 2 debuts Thursday on Netflix in the US. [Netflix]

Season 4 of "Succession" hits HBO and HBO Max on March 26. In a new teaser, three Roy siblings meet up to plot against their father, Logan (Brian Cox), while Tom (Matthew Macfadyen) settles into the old man's inner circle. More: Co-stars Jeremy Strong, Kieran Culkin, Sarah Snook, Alan Ruck, Justine Lupe, and Alexander Skarsgård all return for the new season. New cast members in Season 4 include Annabeth Gish, Adam Godley, Eili Harboe, and Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson. "Succession" has earned 48 total Emmy nominations for its first three seasons, and has won 13 awards, including two trophies for Best Drama. Neither HBO nor "Succession" creator Jesse Armstrong has publicly discussed how long the series will run, or if there's a chance it could end with Season 4. VARIETY

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The cast of "Critical Role" Amazon signed an exclusive multi-year deal with Critical Role, the media company behind the popular D&D play-along series and the animated Prime Video fantasy-comedy "The Legend of Vox Machina." The first project to emerge from the new agreement will be "Mighty Nein," based on a role-playing campaign from the group's YouTube show. More: The original "Mighty Nein" campaign streamed on "Critical Role" from January 2018 through mid-2021; it centers on a group of criminals and misfits tasked with retrieving an artifact capable of bending reality. The "Mighty Nein" series will be animated by Titmouse, the same studio that teamed with Critical Role on "Vox Machina." Season 2 of "Vox Machina" debuted on January 20 on Prime Video; a third season is currently in production. VARIETY

Starz shared a new trailer for the upcoming "Party Down" revival. The workplace comedy series about caterers in Hollywood returns for a long-awaited third season on February 24. More: "Party Down" closed out its original two-season run in 2010. Most of the main cast returns for the new episodes, including Adam Scott, Jane Lynch, Ken Marino, Megan Mullally, Martin Starr, and Ryan Hansen. Lizzy Caplan was the lone holdout from the original cast, as the production schedule conflicted with her role on FX's "Fleishman is in Trouble." TV LINE

The HBO Max DC Comics adaptations "Titans" and "Doom Patrol" will both end after their current fourth seasons. Both shows come from "Arrowverse" mastermind Greg Berlanti. More: The creative teams behind both series had advance warning that Season 4 might be their last, so both shows will conclude with "proper endings." Both series originated on the DC Universe streaming platform, which launched prior to the creation of HBO Max. The decision to end both shows apparently pre-dated the hiring of James Gunn and Peter Safran as the new heads of DC Studios, and was not influenced by their new plans for a shared DC Comics on-screen universe. HBO Max also streams the DC Comics-inspired spy thriller series "Pennyworth," which it inherited from the Epix cable network; no word on whether or not that series will continue. HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

Warner Bros. Discovery plans to simulcast this year's "Puppy Bowl" across numerous linear networks and streaming platforms. The Animal Planet special -- now in its 19th year -- will also air on TBS and Discovery Channel, and stream on both the HBO Max and Discovery+ platforms. More: Last year, "Puppy Bowl XVIII" aired on Animal Planet and streamed exclusively on Discovery+. 122 puppies from 67 shelters across the US will take part in "Puppy Bowl XIX," which will also feature the event's first-ever puppy player from the Caribbean island nation of Dominica. Bleacher Report's Tyler Rooks hosts the new special; commentators include Steve Levy, Egypt Sherrod, Mike Jackson, Faruq Tauheed, Zak Bagans, and Alex Guarnaschelli. The event will also feature numerous special guests, including the cast of Discovery's "Street Outlaws," the upcoming superhero film "Shazam! Fury of the Gods," and personalities from across WBD Sports. The pre-game show starts at 1 pm ET on February 12, Super Bowl Sunday. DEADLINE

QUICK HITS We know that talent development is a major challenge. So we made a planner to lend a helping hand!* Just days after he was dropped by Adult Swim, "Rick & Morty" creator Justin Roiland has been removed from Hulu's "Solar Opposites" -- which he co-created -- and "Koala Man"; Roiland faces recently-filed domestic violence charges in Orange County, California. Netflix released a trailer for the supernatural comedy "We Have a Ghost," featuring David Harbour as a friendly spirit who bonds with the new teen resident (Jahi Di'Allo Winston) of the house he's been haunting; the film debuts on February 24. Krista Vernoff will exit her roles as executive producer and showrunner on the tentpole ABC drama series "Grey's Anatomy" and "Station 19" at the end of the current TV season. Bravo dropped a new trailer for the upcoming 20th season of "Top Chef," subtitled "World All-Stars" and bringing back 16 former contestants from around the globe; new episodes debut March 6 on cable and hit Peacock the following day. Oscar-nominated documentary "All That Breathes" -- about two brothers in New Dehli who have devoted their lives to protecting and caring for a local bird of prey, the black kite -- comes to HBO Max in the US on February 7. Apple signed an overall deal with writer Dennis Lehane, who co-created the TV+ crime drama series "Black Bird"; he'll develop and produce a slate of original series for the platform. Netflix dropped a trailer for the UK psychological horror film "The Strays," starring Ashley Madekwe as a suburban mom who becomes increasingly unsettled by the peculiar behavior of mysterious strangers in her neighborhood; the film premieres on February 22. Host Aubrey Plaza and musical guest Sam Smith provided a significant boost to "Saturday Night Live" last week, hitting a Season 48 ratings high among the key 18-49 demographic. HBO Max entered development on the comedy series "Unfriendly Black Hotties," a satire about Gen Z's "weaponization of political correctness" from co-writers and executive producers Keke Palmer, Jermaine Crawford, and Amy Aniobi. Adult Swim greenlit five new episodes of the absurdist animated comedy series "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" from original creators Dave Willis and Matt Maiellaro; the series recently inspired the feature "Aqua Teen Forever: Plantasm," which his HBO Max on March 12. Amazon greenlit the first original Prime Video film from Japan, "The Silent Service," based on a popular manga series by artist and writer Kawaguchi Kaiji. Looking for the right learning and development tools in 2023? Don't decide until you've read this comprehensive checklist.* *This is sponsored content

Lon Harris is the writer and editor of Inside Streaming and was the very first person to ever write an Inside newsletter. He lives in Los Angeles, California, and also writes about TV and film for Fandom, Screen Junkies, Rotten Tomatoes, Gamma Ray and others. Plus he has a Game of Thrones podcast called "Casterly Talk" and competes on The Movie Trivia Schmoedown as "The Professor." Editor Eduardo Garcia is a writer and editor based in New York. He is the author of "Things You Can Do," an illustrated book about climate action. Bylines in The New York Times, The Guardian, Slate, Scientific American, and others. In one of his previous lives, Eduardo worked as a Reuters correspondent in Latin America for nearly a decade.

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