A new YouGov report has uncovered the most searched, most binged, and most streamed TV series of 2022, and reveals the most popular TV shows globally. The titles are ranked by ‘Appetite Score’ – an aggregate of indexed search volume and Wikipedia views for a title.
It will come as no surprise that Stranger Things tops the chart as the most popular series globally, but there are surprises elsewhere in the Top 10. Number 2 was the Champions League, but the rest of the Top 5 features Netflix shows such as Bridgerton and Money Heist, as well as perpetual favourite Friends.
Number 6 is Game of Thrones, which has had its popularity extended by House of the Dragon. Number 7 is Prime Video dark comedy series The Boys. Number 9 is anime series Naruto, and number 10 is Disney Plus Star Wars series The Mandalorian. There are two other anime series in the Top 20 – Pokemon at number 15 and Dragon Ball Super, which comes in at number 17.
In terms of new series that first premiered in 2022, it will come as no surprise that Netflix smash hit Wednesday tops that list. Elsewhere we have Prime Video’s Reacher, surprisingly coming in at number 3. Number 5 is House of the Dragon and number 6 is The Rings of Power, with not much separating the two big fantasy series of last year.
The Mandalorian didn’t release a new season in 2021 or 2022, as season two ended all the way back in December 2020. Therefore, The Mandalorian being in the Top 10 is pretty good going, even if it did come below Naruto. Naruto: Shippuden ended in 2017, so it’s also proof that anime is still enduringly popular.
A reminder that we are recapping The Mandalorian season 3 episode by episode, so make sure you don’t miss an entry!