‘Yellowjackets’ becomes second-most-watched series in showtime history

The audience on Showtime has had enough of froufrou escapism: now they’re watching teen cannibals, serial killers, and a lot of way-too-realistic blood. “Yellowjackets,” the buzzy drama with a perfect Rotten Tomatoes score and plenty of fan theories, completed its first season this past Sunday as Showtime’s second most-streamed series, after the just shown “Dexter: New Blood,” according to the paycabler.

The startling and ominous “Yellowjackets” finale sent shivers down the spines of over a million people, attracting 1.3 million viewers across platforms on Sunday alone, more than doubling its popularity from the season premiere. Furthermore, across all platforms, the series has averaged over 5 million weekly viewers, the highest for a Showtime launch series since “Billions” debuted in 2016.

The streaming audience for “Yellowjackets” doubled over the course of the 10-episode first season, according to Showtime. The gory drama was nominated for WGA Awards for outstanding drama series and best new series last week, and it was included on almost 50 year-end “Best of” TV lists. Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson (“Narcos”) devised the psychological horror, coming-of-age drama, and survival saga, which is produced for Showtime by eOne. Executive producers include Lyle, Nickerson, and Jonathan Lisco.

“We are thrilled, to say the least, at the phenomenon that is ‘Yellowjackets,'” said Jana Winograde, Showtime Networks’ head of entertainment. “The wild success of the series in viewership and reviews has been exciting, but what’s been most exciting is watching ‘Yellowjackets’ explode in the collective zeitgeist — seeing the fans’ unbridled passion for the characters, endless theories about the mystery and even their abundant fan art. This kind of show is magic in a bottle, and we want to thank and congratulate Ashley, Bart, Jonathan and the entire cast and crew for the role they played in its creation. It’s a massive understatement to say that we can’t wait for next season.”

“Yellowjackets,” along with “Dexter: New Blood,” had the most signups in Showtime’s history in the fourth quarter of 2021. Showtime renewed “Yellowjackets” for Season 2 in December, to no one’s surprise.

“Yellowjackets” follows a high school girls soccer team who become the unlucky survivors of an aircraft crash deep in the isolated northern tundra, tracking their harrowing transformation from thriving buddies to savage clans. The show also follows some of the survivors as they seek to live normal lives 25 years later, but current events indicate that the Yellowjackets are not yet out of the woods.

Melanie Lynskey, Christina Ricci, Juliette Lewis, Tawny Cypress, Ella Purnell, Samantha Hanratty, Sophie Thatcher, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Sophie Nélisse, Steven Krueger, and Warren Kole star in Season 1 of the show, for which she was nominated for a Critics’ Choice Award for her portrayal of adult Shauna.

Showrunners Lyle, Nickerson, and Jonathan Lisco, as well as Drew Comins of Creative Engine and Karyn Kusama, who also directed the pilot episode, are executive producers on “Yellowjackets.”