Bridgerton’s highly anticipated third series has positioned itself at the top of Netflix’s most-watched list – and looking at the figures, we’re predicting it’s going to be a hard one to beat.
In its first three days on the streaming platform, season three part one accumulated more than 45 million views. That’s over 35 million more than the second entry – Netflix’s latest documentary, Ashley Madison: Sex, Lies & Scandal, which peaked at 9.4 million during its first week.
And these Bridgerton numbers just reflect the first four episodes – the second half of the series isn’t set for release until June 13. So, we’d put money on the next drop making just as much, if not more, of a bang.
The newest available episodes of the Regency era drama, which are based on the books by Julia Quinn, focus on the blossoming relationship between the third Bridgerton child, Colin (Luke Newton), and Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan).
Fans went wild after ‘Polin’ embarked on a rather steamy carriage copulation, which was followed by Colin’s emotional marriage proposal to Penelope.
Viewers quickly took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to debrief the major moment, with one fan writing: ‘The scream I scrumpt when Colin “hungry boi” Bridgerton feasted on Penelope’s cleavage like a starving man. I threw my laptop across the room like a hot potato.’
Another added: ‘This was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen because that’s not lust, that’s deep DEEP love. #Polin,’ as a third said: ‘The carriage scene. That’s it. That’s the tweet. #Bridgerton.’
Meanwhile, the writers have been sure to weave in a few juicy subplots, some of which don’t feature in the novels. This includes Benedict Bridgerton’s (Luke Thompson) wild romance with the wealthy widow, Lady Tilley Arnold (Hannah New).
This new addition has led fans to wonder whether his romance with Sophie Beckett, the illegitimate daughter of an Earl, will make the cut, as the pair go on to marry and have children in the books. Only time will tell if the plot makes it to the small screen.
However, Bridgerton isn’t the only new Netflix addition that streamers have been raving over. As previously mentioned, the documentary Ashley Madison: Sex, Lies & Scandal, which landed on the platform on May 10, has also been a huge hit.
It recounts the true story of when Ashley Madison – a dating website for people looking to have affairs – was hacked.
In 2015, the hackers threatened to release all the information of the website’s users. At the time, the site had over 30 million members, many of whom were affected after their affairs were exposed.
The hackers also targeted Ashley Madison’s CEO, Noel Biderman, by releasing his personal emails, some of which revealed his own infidelities.
Despite the trailer calling the event the ‘biggest hack of all time,’ and one that wrecked marriages and destroyed lives, a 2020 report released by the company stated that Ashley Madison had more than 70 million members.
Elsewhere, Richard Gadd’s Baby Reindeer is still performing exceptionally well, and is enjoying its sixth week on the most-watched list. In spite of being knocked off the top spot, the internet-breaking miniseries is still perched in the top three, most recently raking in 7.4 million views in one week.
The alarming true story follows Gadd’s own experiences with a stalker in his mid-twenties, and how he navigated the traumatic ordeal.
And considering the unparalleled success of Bridgerton season three, it wasn’t surprising to see the previous two seasons of the show high up on the list too.
While the 2020 debut series placed at number four, complete with 4.5 million views in the past week, 2022’s follow-up slid further down the ranks at number eight. It still pulled in a respectable 3.3 million views, though.
Other notable mentions include Bodkin, a new thriller series with a synopsis that gives Only Murders in the Building vibes. Coming in at number six, it achieved 4 million views in one week.
Plus, Netflix special The Roast of Tom Brady enjoyed 3.4 million views – around 10 million less than when it previously topped the most-watched list.
The controversial programme, which saw sports figures and comics join together to ‘roast’ former NFL quarterback Tom Brady, came in at number seven.
Part one of Bridgerton season 3 is available to stream on Netflix now.
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