Blockbuster – Picture: Netflix
Netflix’s new comedy series Blockbuster has debuted and deliberately sets up a second season but will we get one? Here’s everything we know about a second season of Blockubser on Netflix, including how well season 1 has performed, what the cast and crew have said, and what we expect.
Created by Vanessa Ramos (known for Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Superstore), this new workplace comedy features the talents of Randall Park, Melissa Fumero, Olga Merediz, and Tyler Alvarez.
It premiered on Netflix on November 3rd, 2022, with 10 episodes to mixed reviews, currently sitting at a 5.1 on IMDb and 23% on RottenTomatoes.
The series did receive a thumbs-up recommendation from Netflix co-CEO Reed Hastings in a Tweet to the co-founder of Netflix, Marc Randolph.
But will we be heading back to the last Blockbuster store on Netflix? Here’s what we know:
Has Netflix Renewed or Canceled Blockbuster?
Official Renewal Status: Not yet renewed
Our Renewal Prediction: 50/50 – leaning toward cancelation.
No decision has been made yet on the show’s future, although early performance data could indicate that getting a renewal may be a hard ask.
As we’ve discussed previously, Netflix will use multiple factors to decide on whether to renew, and an important number for a show of this size will be how many people go on to finish the series.
Picture: Netflix
We should note at this point that Netflix has had a rough time renewing comedy series as of late, at least when it comes to freshman English language comedies.
This is backed up by the fact that Netflix hasn’t renewed a single freshman (first season) or a comedy show since May 2021, with that being The Upshaws.
Titles like Hard Cell, The Pentaverate, God’s Favorite Idiot, Uncoupled, Mo, Chad, and JT Go Deep are awaiting renewals, while Pretty Smart has been officially canceled.
In an interview with THR, Vanessa Ramos signaled she hoped for more episodes adding that she’s even planning on taking a trip out to the last Blockbuster store in Bend should they get renewed.
Ramos told DigitalSpy shortly after its debut that they’re “waiting to hear back from Netflix,” adding that she doesn’t want to get too excited about anything just yet.
How well is Blockbuster performing on Netflix?
So far, Blockbuster isn’t performing as well as Netflix might have hoped.
The show has yet to feature in the official Netflix top 10 site missing the title in Blockbuster’s first week, meaning that the new show was watched for less than 20.30M global hours.
So to look at performance, we’ll have to look a little more granular.
According to FlixPatrol data, the show featured in the Netflix top 10s in 13 of the 90 total countries that they track.
Their data suggests that the series peaked on day 2 of its premiere being the 21st biggest series on Netflix. As of November 10th, it’s now the 29th most popular series.
In the US, where performance should be the strongest, the title peaked at number 8 in the Netflix top 10s.
Popularity heatmap for Blockbuster – Picture: FlixPatrol
What about external stats? Things don’t look particularly strong on that front, either.
TelevisionStats.com states that the show peaked on November 4th when looking at data from the likes of Google, Wikipedia, Torrents, and IMDb. As of November 10th, the show is the 13th most popular series using external data and the 55th most popular title overall.
What to Expect from Blockbuster Season 2 on Netflix
Should the show get renewed? What can we expect? Let’s dive in.
To recap, episode 10 ends as a holiday special, with the team beginning the episode by decorating the store. Disaster strikes, however, with customers ransacking the store and Timmy on the verge of giving up.
The series concludes with Hannah watching the video of Aaron’s failed proposal and discovering that Eliza does have feelings for Timmy.
Speaking to SlashFilm on the “bittersweet” finale, Vanessa Ramos told them:
“For the finale, as a room, we were happy with it and we had our fun stuff. Some characters, Connie and Patrice, had their win, which we also considered the other love story of the show. I don’t know that it came across after editing, but the Patrice character, her whole deal is her nail salon is Paris-themed, but she’s only been to the Paris Hotel in Vegas. So, there’s a slot machine. You see it in there on occasion, like, “Why is there a slot machine?” It’s because her reference of Paris is Vegas, and she thinks that’s the same thing.”
Picture: Netflix
Should we get a second season, we’d expect to have similar story beats from the first season, with the gang desperately trying to keep the lights on, taking stabs at Netflix, and relationships developing between all the main cast members.
If you need more Blockbuster in your life, those in the United States can still watch the documentary called The Last Blockbuster which was added to the service in March 2021.