Long-Running TV Show Now No. 3 on Netflix, 32 Years Since Its Premiere

WWE Raw’s departure from linear television to streaming is a success!

More than 30 years after the professional wrestling program debuted, and following its move from the USA Network to Netflix earlier this year, WWE Raw is dominating the Netflix streaming charts.

After Monday’s most recent installment, the program launched to the No. 6 spot globally on Netflix, where other hit shows like Ginny & Georgia, The Waterfront, and The Sandman also rank, per FlixPatrol data. The program ranks in the top three in countries including Australia, Canada, India, Mexico, and the United Kingdom, according to FlixPatrol. In the U.S., the show shot to No. 1 Tuesday and now ranks No. 3 as of Wednesday, only falling behind Sullivan’s Crossing and Squid Game.

The show’s current success comes amid a major shift to WWE Raw that occurred earlier this year. Originally debuting in 1993, the program remained a linear TV staple, first airing on USA Network before later moving to TNT and back to USA, for more than 30 years before it was announced in January 2024 that Netflix and WWE finalized a 10-year, $5 billion deal for exclusive rights to Raw.

“This deal is transformative,” Mark Shapiro, TKO President and COO, said at the time. “It marries the can’t-miss WWE product with Netflix’s extraordinary global reach and locks in significant and predictable economics for many years. Our partnership fundamentally alters and strengthens the media landscape, dramatically expands the reach of WWE, and brings weekly live appointment viewing to Netflix.”

Netflix Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria added, “We are excited to have WWE Raw, with its huge and passionate multigenerational fan base, on Netflix. By combining our reach, recommendations, and fandom with WWE, we’ll be able to deliver more joy and value for their audiences and our members. Raw is the best of sports entertainment, blending great characters and storytelling with live action 52 weeks a year and we’re thrilled to be in this long-term partnership with WWE.”

WWE Raw officially made the move to Netflix this January, and has proven to be a powerhouse ever since. For the week ending Sunday, July 6, Netflix’s most recent week of viewership data, Raw ranked No. 5 globally with 2.5 million views and 4.6 million hours viewed. Complete viewership data for the program since its inception at Netflix isn’t available.

Raw, one of the longest-running weekly episodic television shows, airs new installments every Monday at 8 p.m. ET live on Netflix.