Kevin Williamson’s new series “The Waterfront” debuted to promising viewership in its first week on Netflix as the week’s most-watched English-language TV series. But will the family drama — which closes with a cliffhanger that could expand the world — score a Season 2 renewal? A peek at some recent premiere ratings might provide a clue.
While it’s too early to predict how the series might perform across the coming weeks, premiere numbers for “The Waterfront,” which scored 8.3 million views in first four days on Netflix, are comparable to Western drama series “Ransom Canyon,” which received a Season 2 renewal from the streamer this week.
Debuting in April, “Ransom Canyon” logged 7.2 million viewers in its first four days, ranking as the week’s No. 2 most-watched TV show behind “Black Mirror” Season 7. “Ransom Canyon” grew to reach 9.4 million views in its second week — second to “You” Season 5 — before sliding down to 4.2 million in its third week and 2.5 million in its fourth week. “Ransom Canyon” never topped the English-language TV list during its four weeks on the top 10 list.
Likewise, “Forever,” which was granted a sophomore season renewal just over a week after its premiere, debuted to nearly half the viewership of “The Waterfront” with 3.7 million views, but the YA romance series quickly became a cult favorite among viewers. Viewership for “Forever” went on to grow to 6.7 million views in its second week before sliding down to 3.2 million in its third and 2.3 million viewers in its fourth — notably also not making it to the top of Netflix’s TV list in its four weeks on the top 10.
On the other hand, recently released series “The Residence” and “Pulse” — which debuted in March and April, respectively — have not yet received the green light for sophomore seasons despite exhibiting promising viewership and remaining on the top 10 list for their first four weeks. “The Residence,” a comedic whodunnit starring Uzo Aduba set in the White House, debuted to 6.4 million views in its first four days, before growing to 8.8 million in its second week and sliding back down to 4.6 million and 3.1 million, respectively, in its third and fourth. Likewise, the medical drama “Pulse” scored a debut viewership of 6.5 million, grew to 8.5 million in its second week and then dropped to 3.2 million and 2 million the next two weeks.
While a second season of “Pulse” would pick up from up on the drama from Miami’s Maguire Medical Center, it should be noted that continuing “The Residence” would require more creative planning, as creator Paul William Davies previously stated that a second season would take detective Cordelia Cupp to a new murder mystery in a different location.
We’d be remiss not to note the recent renewal for comedy series “The Four Seasons,” which debuted to a viewership of 11.9 million as the week’s most-watched TV series and hung onto the top spot as it grew to 12.5 million views in its second before sliding down the list for the additional three weeks it stayed on the top 10 list.
With most TV series seeing growth in their second week — capturing viewership for a full week rather than the four days from its Thursday release through Sunday — “The Waterfront” will likely tack on some viewers next week, but the series already has a solid start.
Don’t expect it to top the TV list next week though, as Netflix juggernaut “Squid Game” returns for its third and final season on Friday.
NBA Finals close out strong
After exhibiting a decline likely due to the pairing of two smaller markets in Indianapolis and Oklahoma City, Sunday’s Game 7 of the NBA Finals delivered the biggest audience the playoffs have seen in six years. The game brought in an average viewership of 16.6 million viewers and peaked with 19.6 million as Thunder took home the NBA championship.
While some early games trended downwards from previous years, the overall average for the entirety of 2025 NBA playoffs, which included 34 games, was up 10% from 2024.
Prime Video brings younger viewers to the NASCAR Cup series
The NBA Finals weren’t the only sport to conclude to ratings success on Sunday, with the NASCAR Cup Series, which streamed exclusively on Prime Video for the first time, averaging 2.16 million viewers across five events, according to Nielsen.
The series scored especially well among younger viewers, with Prime Video averaging a median age of 56.1 for the five races — nearly seven years younger than the linear audience watching the Cup Series in 2025.
“NCIS” sees streaming growth with Season 22 finale
“NCIS” was the No. 1 most-watched acquired title on Nielsen’s streaming charts during the week of May 19 — a feat the CBS procedural series has not reached since 2023. “NCIS” is a mainstay in the top 10 acquired list, and even ranks as the all-time top acquired program by number of appearances (265 overall), but the “NCIS” Season 22 finale, which aired on CBS on May 5 and was available to stream on Paramount+ the next day, boosted streaming viewership to unprecedented heights.
“NCIS” logged 824 million minutes during the week, ranking as the No. 2 most-watched streaming title overall.
“America’s Got Talent” and “Destination X” boost NBC’s summer Tuesdays
With most scripted broadcast shows on hiatus until the fall, unscripted series “America’s Got Talent” and “Destination X” boosted NBC’s Tuesday primetime lineup to top the major broadcast networks.
“America’s Got Talent” Season 20 has reached 24 million total viewers across NBC and Peacock this summer to date, per NBCUniversal, while new series “Destination X” has reached 14 million total viewers across NBC and Peacock.
