According to the Ampere Analysis report, the average wait time between seasons of scripted original series on streaming platforms has nearly doubled, rising from 12 months in 2020 to 21 months by 2025.
This significant extension in production timelines is largely attributed to the surge in demand for high-end, blockbuster-style content during the streaming boom of 2022.
However, long waits do not always yield negative results, as shows like Severance and Wednesday have managed to achieve above-average engagement during their premiere months despite extensive gaps, often because audiences rewatch previous seasons or new viewers discover the content during the wait.
The impact of these delays also varies by genre: while Sci-Fi and Fantasy titles prove more resilient to long waits, Comedy audiences are less tolerant of extended gaps, whereas Crime and Thriller content maintains consistent performance across various release patterns.
Ultimately, these long breaks pose a risk of subscriber churn, as evidenced by the first quarter of 2026, when 54% of respondents in the US indicated they would likely cancel a service if they were not using it frequently enough.
