Netflix Loses Major Fox Sitcom to Hulu and Peacock

By Michael Hein

Fans have just over a month left to binge New Girl on Netflix, but after that, they can find it on two other streaming services. The beloved sitcom will depart from Netflix on Friday, April 17, and will then be streaming on Peacock and Hulu instead, according to a report by Deadline. This is part of a long-term licensing agreement between the streamers, but is also another step in the trend of studios calling their own intellectual properties home.

There are 146 episodes of New Girl, and they are all sticking together as they switch streaming platforms. The show was produced by Chernin Entertainment in association with 20th Television and distributed by Disney Entertainment, giving it strong connections to the Disney umbrella – including Hulu. The streaming landscape has changed a great deal since Netflix first secured the rights to New Girl in 2013. It has been a binge-watching staple for sitcom fans over the years, but now they will need to look elsewhere to find it. This is a move that many have been speculating about for years now.

While Netflix got a big head start in the streaming industry, it has still struggled to keep up with established studios that have their own IP libraries to draw from. Even some of its early victories have turned ultimately profited its competitors – last spring, Netflix lost all five of its Marvel Cinematic Universe shows – Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist and The Defenders – and they are now on Disney+ instead. Disney+ added a new parental control system that allows it to host more mature content without fear of children getting into it unsupervised.

At the time of this writing, New Girl is still available on Netflix in the U.S., but it looks like it was recently removed from the service in other countries. Fans there were devastated, tweeting that they were at a loss without their favorite show to binge-watch. Some even said that they were now going to cancel their subscriptions.

New Girl followed an early-30s woman named Jess (Zooey Deschanel) who moves in with three bachelors (Jake Johnson, Max Greenfield and Lamorne Morris) out of desperation after finding out that her long-time boyfriend was cheating on her. She copes with the breakup while getting accustomed to life in the apartment and develops unlikely friendships with all three men. The group is rounded out by former roommate Coach (Damon Wayans Jr.) and Jess' friend Cece (Hannah Simone).

New Girl has a die-hard fandom to this day and has generally positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic as well. For now, you can stream the whole show on Netflix in the U.S., and starting next month you can watch it on either Peacock or Hulu. Those who want a secure way to binge the show regardless of streaming rights might want to consider purchasing it – either digitally or on DVD.

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