Controversial Netflix Show Hits Milestone Achieved Only by 'Squid Game' and 'Stranger Things'

12/05/2022 03:27 pm EST

One of the most controversial Netflix shows to date has just joined a rarified group. Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story has now reached 1 billion hours viewed in its first 60 days of release. The only other shows to do that so far are Squid Game and Stranger Things 4.

All 10 episodes of Dahmer were released on Sept. 21. Since then, Netflix subscribers have watched 1 billion hours of the show, reports Variety. Squid Game reached 1.65 billion hours watched in its first 28 days of release, while Stranger Things' fourth season reached 1.35 billion hours watched in the same time frame. Dahmer already held the position of the third-most watched Netflix show in its first weeks of release when it reached 701.37 million hours watched in three weeks. Dahmer topped Netflix's Top 10 list for three weeks and stayed on the chart for seven weeks.

Dahmer stars Evan Peters as Jeffrey Dahmer, a serial killer and sex offender who murdered and dismembered 16 men and boys between 1978 and 1981. Richard Jenkins played his father Lionel, while Molly Ringwald played Dahmer's stepmother. Niecy Nash played Glenda Cleveland and Michael Learned starred as Dahmer's grandmother. The series was created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan.

The show was widely criticized by those who saw it as glamorizing Dahmer. The families of his victims also called out the show for retraumatizing and ignoring them. Netflix reportedly never approached them during the development of the show. After its release, Netflix was slammed for including the "LGBTQ" tag on the show.

Despite all that controversy, Netflix and Murphy are teaming up again for two more Monster seasons, the streamer announced last month. The upcoming seasons of Monster will focus on stories of "other monstrous figures who have impacted society." That means Monster will turn into an anthology show, similar to Murphy's hits for FX, American Horror Story and American Crime Story. Netflix renewed The Watcher, which was also created by Murphy and Brennan. Both shows were Murphy's first big hits for Netflix, as his previous projects flopped.

"Audiences can't take their eyes off Monster and The Watcher. The creative team of Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan on Monster along with Eric Newman on The Watcher are masterful storytellers who captivated audiences all over the world," Netflix head of global TV Bela Bajaria said in November. "The back-to-back force of these two series is due to Ryan's distinct original voice which created cultural sensations, and we are thrilled to continue telling stories in the Monster and Watcher universes." 

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