Netflix has revealed that British-made shows have proved to be the most popular with audiences on its global streaming service so far this year.
Ted Sarandos, co-chief executive of Netflix, said the thriller Fool Me Once, the dark comedy Baby Reindeer, Regency drama Bridgerton and crime caper The Gentleman took the top four places.
He said the four shows attracted a combined 360m views globally in the first six months of 2024.
Sarandos, who said the full top 10 most-viewed list would be revealed on Thursday, described the UK as “the birthplace of prestige television”, adding Netflix was currently producing more than 100 shows and films there.
Fool Me Once, based on the novel by Harlan Coben and starring the former Coronation Street actor Michelle Keegan alongside Joanna Lumley, is the most popular show on Netflix so far this year with 108m views.
Bridgerton drew 92m views in the first six months, Baby Reindeer 88m and The Gentleman 76m.
Sarandos, speaking at the Royal Television Society conference on Tuesday, defended Baby Reindeer, which is the subject of a £133m ($170m) lawsuit filed by the real-life woman portrayed as the stalker in the hit show.
The show, which picked up six Emmy awards on Sunday night, has become one of Netflix’s biggest hits of all time.
The series is the account of its creator and star Richard Gadd. On Tuesday, Sarandos said that Netflix has just completed a “first look” deal with Gadd for his next projects.
In Baby Reindeer, Gadd plays the lead role of comedian Donny Dunn, and his experience with a stalker known as Martha.
Following the debut of the series, which opens with the line “This is a true story”, Fiona Harvey came forward identifying herself as the “real Martha”, alleging that the show contained material untruths about her.
Harvey has filed a lawsuit in California against Netflix alleging defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, gross negligence and violations of her right of publicity.
“We are facilitating story tellers to tell their stories,” said Sarandos. “Baby Reindeer is his [Gadd’s] story, he told his story, it is not a documentary.”
In the show, Gadd’s stalker was imprisoned. In real life, the alleged stalker says she has received no conviction.
“There are elements of the story that are dramatised,” said Sarandos. “It is abundantly clear that there is dramatisation involved. This debate [about Baby Reindeer’s status as a true story] is not happening anywhere else in the world. Just the UK.”
Gadd, in his Emmy awards acceptance speech on Sunday, urged aspiring writers to take risks.
“The only constant across any success in television is good storytelling,” he told the audience. “Good storytelling speaks to our times … take risks, push boundaries, explore the uncomfortable, dare to fail in order to achieve.”
