Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorNetflix has pumped billions of dollars into original programming — but overall, its library of older licensed TV shows far outperforms homegrown hits like “Squid Game” or “Bridgerton.”In 2021 on Netflix, “Criminal Minds,” the crime-drama procedural that aired on CBS from 2005-20, scored as the most-viewed TV show among U.S.
streaming platforms tracked by Nielsen.The 12 seasons of “Criminal Minds” available on Netflix registered an estimated 33.9 billion minutes watched last year by American viewers, per Nielsen.
The show’s cast over the years included Mandy Patinkin, Thomas Gibson, Paget Brewster, Joe Mantegna, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Jennifer Love Hewitt and Aisha Tyler.The massive watch-time for “Criminal Minds” on Netflix is all the more impressive given that it’s nonexclusive: All 15 seasons of the show are on Paramount Plus (for which Nielsen does not report viewing) and seasons 13-15 are available on Hulu.
In second place overall in TV shows was “CoComelon,” the kid’s show from Moonbug Entertainment (now part of Tom Staggs and Kevin Mayer’s Candle Media).
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