The end of the Peak TV era has budget-conscious TV streamers relying on classic or long-running series like Suits, The Big Bang Theory and Grey’s Anatomy. They score high among streamers when measured for total minutes viewed, and not coincidentally are series led by white characters.
But the latest Hollywood Diversity Report from UCLA also measured streaming series for household ratings to reveal a hidden market not fully accounted for: women and BIPOC audiences preferring new and current titles that tend to be more diverse in terms of storylines and characters.
The UCLA study found women are the most engaged audience for new streaming series measured for overall household minutes viewed and also ranked by total household ratings. The median ratings were higher across demographics for shows led by actors of color and for shows featuring underrepresented stories, researchers added.
“Focusing on total minutes watched gives an advantage to older shows that have more episodes and seasons on streaming platforms. Current shows, which our research has repeatedly shown to be more diverse, face a disadvantage in some ways from the onset,” Darnell Hunt, interim chancellor at UCLA, argued in a statement.
The latest Hollywood Diversity Report looked at streaming TV series and the diversity of their actors, creators and audience in 2023. And the study focused on the top 250 TV series available from major streaming services and, for the first time, accounted for library titles alongside new and ongoing programs, regardless of language, to see where the future of popular streaming TV lies.
One of the key conclusions was that new shows, often with stories from underrepresented communities, and diverse actors and creators, proved popular with audiences. “Top streaming shows in 2023 that featured underrepresented stories posted higher median ratings than those that did not, especially for female audiences (1.57 rating points vs 0.78 ratings points),” the study found.
Over 60 percent of the top-rated shows had secondary themes, including stories centered around women or LGBTQ characters. When measuring total household ratings, streaming series that engaged audiences include kids animation series like Cocomelon and Bluey, and diverse shows like Wednesday, Queen Charlotte and Beef.
Researcher Michael Tran, who co-authored the report, added: “The future of the industry lies in stepping away from this reliance on old and dated content. So-called ‘comfort television’ won’t bring in first-time subscribers or keep people from canceling their subscriptions. They need something new.”
