Demand Side

Netflix's New Hits Clobber the Streaming Competition

By SOS. News Desk | Sep 03, 2025

Netflix continues to dominate home viewing, with the new Adam Sandler sequel "Happy Gilmore 2" and drama series "The Hunting Wives" crushing the competition, together pulling in a massive 3.5 billion minutes of viewing in a single week, according to the latest Nielsen data.

  • Stacking the deck: The platform's success wasn't limited to its top two hits. Its animated musical "KPop Demon Hunters" also reclaimed the top movie spot, cementing its status as the service's biggest original film to date.

  • Pockets of resistance: But the streaming giant doesn’t own every screen. Elsewhere in home entertainment, DC's "Superman" topped the rental charts, while Universal’s live-action "How to Train Your Dragon" led disc sales—a reminder that some fans are still happy to pay for individual titles.

While competitors fight for niches, Netflix's ability to generate massive, simultaneous hits across different genres shows its grip on the mainstream audience is as strong as ever.

Credit: netflix.com (edited)

Key Takeaways

  • Netflix's "Happy Gilmore 2" and "The Hunting Wives" achieve 3.5 billion minutes of viewing in one week, dominating the streaming landscape.

  • Animated musical "KPop Demon Hunters" reclaims the top movie spot on Netflix, becoming its biggest original film.

  • Despite Netflix's success, DC's "Superman" leads rental charts, and "How to Train Your Dragon" tops disc sales, showing diverse consumer preferences.

  • Netflix's ability to produce simultaneous hits across genres highlights its strong hold on mainstream audiences.