"Leo" #1 on Nielsen / "Gilded Age" renewed for S3 / "The Conners" heads to CW / Gervais responds to petition

Plus the holiday calendar, Deadline digs into the Netflix data, "Run the Burbs" to Hulu, "The Leftovers" on Peacock, and more

Inside Streaming For December 22, 2023

Thanks for opening today's Inside Streaming newsletter! I'll be taking Monday off, cause it's Christmas, so I'm including those new streaming releases in today's line-up. We'll be back Tuesday for a week of shorter-than-usual newsletters (not because I'm slacking! there's just less news!), but I'll supplement with my picks for the Best in Streaming 2023. So look out for those emails. And have a great holiday weekend! Lon p/lon-harris

1 According to Nielsen's latest figures, three titles topped 1 billion minutes streamed over Thanksgiving week in the US this year. Two additional titles hit the 900 million minutes viewed milestone. More: Netflix's animated musical comedy feature "Leo," starring Adam Sandler as a class pet who fully embraces his role, topped Nielsen's Thanksgiving charts, with 1.5 billion minutes streamed. "Leo" now holds the record for Netflix's most-viewed animated film debut in history. The Netflix reality competition series "Squid Game: The Challenge" hit second places with 1.4 billion minutes streamed. The animated family comedy series "Bluey" on Disney+ also topped 1 billion minutes viewed over the holiday week. Fourth place went to the CBS sitcom "Young Sheldon," which moved over to Netflix while still streaming on Max.

2 HBO renewed the period drama series "The Gilded Age" for a third season. The show's second season finale just debuted on December 17. More: The show was created by "Downton Abbey" vet Julian Fellowes, and is set within New York high society in the late 1800s. Series regulars include Carrie Coon, Christine Baranski, Cynthia Nixon, Morgan Spector, Louisa Jacobson, Denée Benton, and Taissa Farmiga. HBO co-produces the show with Universal TV; it was originally developed for NBC before moving over to HBO.

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3 HOLIDAY CALENDAR FRIDAY, DECEMBER 22 REBEL MOON – PART ONE: A CHILD OF FIRE: Filmmaker Zack Snyder's epic sci-fi fantasy feature is set on the peaceful moon of Veldt, which is threatened by a hostile military force known as The Imperium. Sofia Boutella stars as a former Imperium soldier who rallies warriors from across the galaxy to protect her home. Djimon Hounsou, Charlie Hunnam, Michiel Huisman, Fra Fee, Ed Skrein, Jena Malone, and Ray Fisher co-star. Part 2, "The Scargiver," will follow in April 2024. [Netflix] GYEONGSEONG CREATURE: Debut period thriller series from Korea, about a terrifying creature attacking the already-traumatized populace of Japanese-occupied Seoul (still called "Gyeongseong") in the Spring of 1945. Park Seo-joon, Han So-hee, Soo Hyun, and Kim Hae-sook co-star. Season 1 is divided into two halves; Part 1 arrives on Friday. [Netflix] MARVEL STUDIOS' WHAT IF...? The animated superhero anthology series -- inspired by Marvel Comics characters, and spun off from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) -- returns this week for a second season. Jeffrey Wright stars as The Watcher, who looks in on alternate versions of MCU events from across the multiverse. Season 2 co-stars Josh Keaton, Chris Hemsworth, Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen, Sebastian Stan, Michael Douglas, Kurt Russell, Karen Gillan, Jeff Goldblum, and Kat Dennings. [Disney+] SALTBURN: Dark comedy-thriller from writer/director Emerald Fennell ("Promising Young Woman"). In the mid-2000s, an Oxford University student (Barry Keoghan) visits the lavish estate of a wealthy classmate (Jacob Elordi), with whom he's developed an intense fixation. Rosamund Pike, Richard E. Grant, Alison Oliver, and Carey Mulligan co-star. [Amazon] THE 25th ANNUAL A HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS: The annual musical holiday special features inspiring and uplifting adoption stories, and raises awareness about the many kids who need new homes and families. Performers include Lauren Daigle, Gavin DeGraw, David Foster & Katharine McPhee, Pentatonix, and CeCe Winans. It airs on CBS and streams on Paramount+ starting Friday night at 8 pm ET/PT. [Paramount+] MAGGIE MOORE(S): 2023 dark comedy feature from director John Slattery ("God's Pocket"), starring his "Mad Men" castmate Jon Hamm as a small town police chief investigating two murders in which the victims share the same name. Tina Fey, Micah Stock, and Nick Mohammed co-star. [Hulu] MUSHOKU TENSEI: JOBLESS REINCARNATION: Anime series based on the light novels by Rifujin na Magonote and Shirotaka, about a sad, aimless man who dies and is reincarnated into an exciting fantasy world, with his memories of life on Earth intact. The first part of the show's second season hits Hulu in the US this week. [Hulu] MIRACLE IN BETHLEHEM, PA: Holiday rom-com from Hallmark, starring Laura Vandervoort as a new mom who inadvertently recreates the nativity story when she gets stranded in Bethlehem, PA, with nowhere to stay just ahead of Christmas. [Peacock] SUNDAY, DECEMBER 24 SPIRITED AWAY: LIVE ON STAGE: Recording of the stage production of "Spirited Away," inspired by the 2001 animated film from Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli. The story centers on a young girl who explores a hidden world of spirits and demons after getting separated from her parents. The show is in Japanese with English subtitles. [Max] CHRISTMAS REVISITED: Holiday drama, produced for the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN), about a group of old friends who meet at their recently deceased classmate's mountain cabin to spend a memorable holiday together. [Max] A VAMPIRE IN THE FAMILY (MEU CUNHADO É UM VAMPIRO): Horror comedy starring Leandro Hassum as a dedicated family man who's life is upended when his brother-in-law (Romulo Arantes Neto) -- a lazy drifter who he suspects is also a vampire -- comes to town for a visit. [Netflix] THE MANNY: Debut Spanish-language sitcom from Mexico, about a frazzled mother of three who hires a rancher to watch her kids in a moment of panic, then discovers he's the ideal caretaker. Diana Bovio and Iván Amozurrutia co-star. [Netflix] MONDAY, DECEMBER 25 DOCTOR WHO: THE CHURCH ON RUBY ROAD: 2023's "Doctor Who" Christmas special is the first full episode to feature Ncuti Gatwa as the Fifteenth Doctor, and also introduces Millie Gibson as his new companion, Ruby Sunday. Davina McCall, Michelle Greenidge, and Angela Wynter co-star. [Disney+] RICKY GERVAIS: ARMAGEDDON: The comedian and "Office UK" creator's third Netflix stand-up special features material about the end of humanity, along with political correctness, family weddings, and the dawn of artificial intelligence. An advance clip from the show discussing the Make-a-Wish Foundation has already sparked controversy in the UK. [Netflix] STAR TREK: PRODIGY: The animated "Star Trek" series, the franchise's first show aimed at younger viewers, was developed by Nickelodeon and originally premiered on Paramount+. Season 1 now moves over to Netflix, which has also ordered a second season. [Netflix] 90 DAY FIANCÉ: HOLIDAY SPECIAL 2023: Two "90 Day Fiancé" holiday specials are airing this season on TLC; they come to Max on December 25 and 26. In the shows, popular "Pillow Talk" couples return to look back on a collection of iconic moments. [Max] SCOOBY-DOO! AND KRYPTO, TOO! 2023 animated direct-to-VOD mystery-comedy feature from Warner Bros. Animation, in which Superman's pet dog Krypto joins forces with Scooby-Doo to rescue the Justice League from Lex Luthor's latest evil scheme. The voice cast includes Frank Welker, Matthew Lillard, Grey Griffin, Kate Micucci, and P.J. Byrne. [Max]

4 Lionsgate Television struck an unconventional deal with The CW, bringing reruns of "The Conners" over to the network's primetime TV schedule. "The Conners" returns for a sixth season to ABC in February. More: This makes it a rare scenario in which a single broadcast series airs concurrently on two networks. This is not a traditional syndication deal; "The Conners" reruns hit the syndication market in Fall 2024. Reruns of "The Conners" will air Thursday nights from 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm on The CW; starting in February, new episodes premiere Wednesday nights on ABC.

5 A Change.org petition asking Netflix to remove a joke aimed at terminally ill children from Ricky Gervais' new stand-up special has received over 12,000 signatures. Gervais responded to the petition during a BBC Radio 5 podcast, saying that the people who signed it are "hecklers" who have "no effect on me." More: Gervais' special "Armageddon" hits Netflix globally on Christmas Day. In a brief clip released by Netflix to promote the special, Gervais refers to terminally ill children as "baldy" and references "the R-word." The petition was organized by Anna Villa, referring to herself as the parent of a child who "bravely battled cancer"; she writes that "our children are not a punchline, their lives aren't a joke." Gervais' previous Netflix special, "SuperNature," also included some controversial material; the LGBTQ advocacy group GLAAD said it contained "anti-trans rants masquerading as jokes." Gervais rose to fame as the creator and star of the original UK "The Office"; he's made a number of shows and films for Netflix, including "Derek" and "After Life."

6 Deadline's analysis of Netflix's recently-released viewership data indicates that female-centric content performs particularly well for the streamer. "The Night Agent" is listed as the #1 most-streamed show on the platform, but only because Netflix separates seasons out individually; when all seasons are combined, "Ginny & Georgia" was actually the most-watched series between January and June this year. More: When put together, both seasons of "Ginny & Georgia" were viewed for 967.2 million hours from January to June on Netflix. "Ginny & Georgia" Season 2 was added to Netflix's library in January, giving it more time to rack up views than "The Night Agent," which landed in March. As well, Netflix's most watched film during this period was the action-thriller "The Mother," starring Jennifer Lopez. The "Bridgerton" franchise, and particularly the spinoff limited series "Queen Charlotte," also dominated the Netflix rankings, with 773 million viewing hours across both series. "The Addams Family" spinoff "Wednesday" as well proved massively successful in the first half of 2023, despite joining Netflix's library in November 2022.

7 Hulu acquired the US streaming rights for the Canadian comedy series "Run the Burbs." The first two seasons hit Hulu on New Year's Eve. More: The show's third season also premieres this coming week on the CBC network in Canada. "Kim's Convenience" vet Andrew Phung stars as a stay-at-home dad raising his kids in the suburbs; Julie Nolke, Ali Hassan, and Aurora Browne co-star. The CW had previously acquired and aired "Run the Burbs" over the summer; the show no longer airs on the network, but remains available to stream on the CW website and app.

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Lon Harris Writer 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." This newsletter was edited by Lon Harris

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