Shonda Rhimes’ ‘Bridgerton’ has become Netflix’s biggest series ever

Netflix has been churning out countless hours of original content for years now, and if its latest viewing numbers are any indication, the hard work is certainly paying off. According to a statement from the streamer, the hot period drama Bridgerton is officially Netflix’s “biggest series ever” with 82M households streaming the buzz-worthy show.

Read More: ‘Bridgerton’ renewed by Netflix for second season; details revealed

Created by Chris Van Dusen, Bridgerton is the first show from former ABC showrunner Shonda Rhimes‘ much-buzzed-about Netflix deal. Based on a series of romance novels by Julia Quinn, the show quickly proved to be a hit when it dropped last month, becoming the most-watched Netflix show in the U.S. in its first week. Now, according to a recent statement from Netflix, Bridgerton is officially the biggest show they have ever released. 

Per Deadline, “Season 1 of Bridgerton was watched by a record 82M households around the world (partially or in its entirety.) That is a whopping 19M households higher than the four-week projection Netflix issued 10 days into the Shondaland series’ run (63 million), at the time the streamer’s fifth-biggest launch in history.”

The record-breaking news comes after the recent announcement that the show will return for a second season. An announcement from the show’s Lady Whistledown character herself reads, “The incomparable cast of Bridgerton will return to production in Spring 2021.”

The announcement also hints the second season will follow the love life of Lord Anthony Bridgerton.The first season, of course, brought viewers into the complicated romance between Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor) and The Duke of Hastings (Regé-Jean Page).

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The show’s success is a good sign forRhimes, who left ABC and signed a deal with Netflix in 2017. While her first and also wildly successful show Grey’s Anatomy, is still on ABC, Rhimes in 2017 was looking to “build a vibrant new storytelling home for writers with the unique creative freedom and instantaneous global reach.

Bridgerton seems to only be the beginning for Shondaland’s new Netflix home, as the company reportedly has 7 more series in development.