Hobbits and heroes are having a moment on Amazon Prime. High-budget originals The Boys and The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power had the largest viewership of all shows on Prime Video in the U.S. in Q3’24.
So large that all 4 seasons of The Boys made the top 10. Somewhere in New York, a supe is exploding a body part in celebration.
Amazon’s acquisition of MGM continues to pay dividends for the platform as production of original content has steadily increased since the March 2022 deal. The success of this focus on growth is apparent in the latest viewing data from Digital i. All of the Prime Video Top 10 shows at season level for Q3’24 were produced in-house, either wholly or in part; 6 out of the Top 10 movies were, too.
Success of straight to streaming
Original movies are a particular area where production has ramped up significantly. This has allowed Amazon to adopt the Netflix model of high-budget, straight-to-streaming movies.
And it seems this is paying off; the top 4 films for the quarter were all Amazon MGM in-house productions.
The #1 movie and straight-to-streamer was The Beekeeper starring Emmy Raver-Lampman and Jason Statham. Four films released theatrically made it on to the list. Among them, Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part I from Paramount/Skydance and Passengers from Sony.
Source: Digital i viewing estimates based on actual account data from a representative sample of U.S. streaming homes.
Top 10 Prime Video Shows
As with original movies, original shows outperformed the competition in Q3’24 at Prime, and to an even larger degree. The most recent seasons of The Boys and The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power ranked 1st and 2nd respectively. The Boys season 4 amassed 3.5 times more views than the 3rd best ranking title: Batman: Caped Crusader.
Other originals with a strong showing included video game-based Fallout and the recently canceled My Lady Jane.
Source: Digital i viewing estimates based on actual account data from a representative sample of U.S. streaming homes.
Fan favorite cancellation
That’s right, despite ranking #4 in the Prime Video Top 10, My Lady Jane will not be renewed for a second season. Thousands of Queen Jane loyalists are disappointed, but it’s not enough to save the popular series. The show has become a cautionary tale: there is no guarantee of longevity in streaming.
That’s why Digital i’s strategic and granular insight into program performance is so critical in today’s landscape. We draw on our over 20 years of experience providing water-tight, data-driven insight to production companies and content sales teams, helping our clients secure the best deals in contract negotiations.
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