Picture: Netflix / WWE
Netflix has begun rolling out its WWE content way ahead of schedule. Over the weekend, Netflix in New Zealand was the first to get new WrestleMania episodes, and they were streamed live this past weekend. Despite a soft rollout, the two streams shot to the top of the Netflix TV top 10s.
In case you missed it, Netflix struck a significant new deal with the WWE back in late January, which would be the streaming home for several high-profile events from the wrestling company. Here’s the crux of the deal per Netflix:
“Beginning in January 2025, Netflix will be the exclusive new home of Raw in the U.S., Canada, U.K. and Latin America, among other territories, with additional countries and regions to be added over time. Likewise, as part of the agreement, Netflix will also become the home for all WWE shows and specials outside the U.S. as available, inclusive of Raw and WWE’s other weekly shows – SmackDown and NXT – as well as the company’s Premium Live Events, including WrestleMania, SummerSlam and Royal Rumble. WWE’s award-winning documentaries, original series and forthcoming projects will also be available on Netflix internationally beginning in 2025.”
Over the weekend, however, Netflix in New Zealand saw WrestleMania hit the service for the first time, providing a glimpse into what we can expect going forward. We can also exclusively reveal that these episodes will remain on Netflix through January 1st, 2035.
The live streams launched without much fanfare on April 7th, with the Saturday WrestleMania XL event and another one the following day, Sunday, April 8th. The Saturday stream lasted four hours and 18 minutes, whereas the Sunday stream lasted three hours and 52 minutes. At the time of publishing, the unedited versions of the stream remain available on Netflix as a replay in New Zealand.
Netflix lists both episodes under Season 40 within the application, and the episodes’ titles reflect that with WrestleMania XL.
Wrestlemania XL on Netflix UI – Picture: What’s on Netflix
It was a good weekend to kick off the launch in New Zealand, too! On this action-packed WrestleMania weekend in Philadelphia, a dominant Judgement Day saw Rhea Ripley retain her title against Becky Lynch. Meanwhile, Damian Priest finally cashed in on Drew McIntyre for the World Heavyweight Championship, who had just taken down Seth ‘Freakin’ Rollins. Capitalizing on her Royal Rumble win, Bailey defeated former ally and champion Iyo Skye for the WWE Women’s Championship.
Meanwhile, a chaotic ladder match saw two new tag team champions. Against the odds, Logan Paul retained his US Championship, while Sami Zayn’s WrestleMania dream was achieved after taking down Gunther for the Intercontinental Championship. Lastly, after losing to Roman Reigns and The Rock on night One, the bloodline rules stipulation had the odds stacked against Cody Rhodes. Defying all the odds, the American Nightmare finished the story by conquering the tribal chief Roman Reigns, ending his 1,316-day title reign, and bringing the WWE into a brand new era of professional wrestling.
Despite being somewhat of a surprise release, the live streams shot to the number 1 spot on Netflix New Zealand’s top 10s, according to FlixPatrol. On April 10th, it fell to the fifth most-watched show on Netflix NZ.
With thanks to Lightshed Partners for the heads up on the addition to NZ! Contains contributions from Jacob Robinson.
Are you from New Zealand and checked out WrestleMania? How did you find the streaming experience? Let us know in the comments or I’d love to speak to you – email [email protected].