New Netflix Series Inspired by Stephen King's Work Breaks Viewership Record

Below, the new Netflix series inspired by the atmosphere of Stephen King's works, set a new viewership record on the platform in its first week. Released on October 8, the series unfolds in the Snooks Arm area of Newfoundland and

The series Below, inspired by the atmosphere of Stephen King's works, set a new record on Netflix in its first week of release.

Netflix's new series Below, released on October 8, is set in the Snooks Arm region of Newfoundland and tells the story of fisherman Calvin Penny, played by Josh Hartnett, who struggles to protect his family and small town after a mysterious creature emerges from the deep sea. Jesse McKeon, the creator of The Umbrella Academy series, was responsible for the creation of this series. Charlie Heaton, Mackenzie Davis, Rohan Campbell, Robbie Stokes and Caleb Horne are also in the series. The initial feedback about Below was very positive and critics compared it with the works of H. P. Lovecraft and Stephen King have compared. The series also scored a remarkable 84% on the Rotten Tomatoes website.

Netflix has just released its official list of the 10 most watched English-language series for the week of October 5-11. The supernatural mini-series Below, which has a similar mood to Stephen King's works, took the first place by attracting 17 million viewers and registering a total of 69.3 million hours of viewing. This success is considered the biggest start in the history of a Netflix original series produced in Canada.

The series Below produced in 2026 was able to occupy the top of the list of the most watched series on Netflix, despite the wide competition from prominent series. Among its competitors are popular titles that have made their way to Netflix from other platforms, including Disney Plus' Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Paramount Plus' Mayor of Kingstown.

Along with these works, several successful Netflix products also competed for a better position. The miniseries East of Eden, based on John Steinbeck's work, was on this platform in its second week; A series that finished the first week of its publication in the first place. The new season of the true crime series Monster, centered on Lizzie Borden and created by Ryan Murphy, was also in its fourth week of airing. In addition, the remake of A Different World was in its third week of release.

Setting such a record for a Canadian Netflix product is no small feat. The success comes after Canadian teen series Crew Girl doubled its viewership in its second week on the platform and was renewed for a second season shortly after. Since the series Below was available to the audience only four out of seven days in the reviewed period, it is likely to attract more than 30 million viewers in the second week and maintain its first position.

The series Below will compete with some highly anticipated series in next week's schedule. These include Hollywood Arts, a spin-off of Victorious, and the fourth season of The Diplomat, both scheduled for release on October 15. The entry of these sets into the competition may make it more difficult for Below to maintain the top spot.

However, if the series continues to attract such a large audience, the possibility of getting the green light for a second season will be very high. The impressive performance of this series in the first week of release shows that Below can become one of the most successful Canadian Netflix productions, and if the audience continues to welcome it, a bright future awaits it.