Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story Joins A Very Prestigious Netflix Club
Controversies and backlash be damned — Ryan Murphy's "Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story" persists as one of Netflix's strongest-performing titles ever. The ten-episode true crime miniseries — which followed the life and crimes of the horrific serial killer — was met with a mixed response from critics upon its release (via Rotten Tomatoes). Though Evan Peters was praised for his portrayal of Dahmer, they felt the series was far too sensational and salacious to be considered respectful to the victims and their families.
Even so, "Monster" captivated audiences with its grotesque approach to Dahmer's story, so much so that it crossed a milestone only achieved by two Netflix shows in the past. According to Variety, Murphy's series has been watched for over one billion hours in the 60 days since its release. This impressive feat secures the show's status as Murphy's most successful project since joining the platform in 2018 (per Variety). After a string of middling series that included "Hollywood" and "The Politician," the "American Horror Story" creator delivered a critical one-two punch this year consisting of "Monster" and "The Watcher" (per Variety). Both series performed well and have been renewed by the streaming platform. "Monster," specifically, received orders for at least two more seasons.
Though the show's performance is undeniably staggering, it isn't entirely unheard of. As previously stated, it is the third title to meet such heights on the platform, preceded by two recent but beloved "Netflix" offerings.
What other Netflix shows are in this club?
Once notoriously private about its viewing numbers, Netflix has finally shared the data behind its heaviest hitters. Directly in front of "Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story" is the fourth season of the platform's relatively long-running American flagship series "Stranger Things" (per CNET). Released in two volumes during the summer of 2022, Season 4 of "Stranger Things" has been watched for nearly 1.4 billion hours. The previous season clocked in at just under 600 million hours.
Topping the board is, predictably, the Korean thriller "오징어 게임" or "Squid Game." The global phenomenon — which captivated audiences with the story of one man's life-or-death fight to survive a murderous string of playground games — was watched for over 1.6 billion hours. "Squid Game" is one of three international programs present in Netflix's top ten most-watched programs, joined by fellow Korean thriller "All of Us Are Dead" ("지금 우리 학교는") and the Spanish crime drama "La casa de papel" — also known as "Money Heist."
Both "Stranger Things" and "Squid Game" received several Emmy nominations, though they both lost outstanding drama series to HBO's "Succession." Actor Lee Jung-jae won outstanding lead actor for his "Squid Game" role, Seong Gi-hun, while series creator Hwang Dong-hyuk won outstanding directing for the episode "Red Light, Green Light" (per the Emmys' website). It will be interesting to see if Ryan Murphy's divisive yet decisively successful series will receive similar accolades during its own Emmys run.