What are Millennials’ and Gen Z’s favourite TV series of the moment?

FANS of the small screen are never short of TV series to watch. Across the generations, US viewers are just as fond of new series as they are of older productions, it seems. But one series, in particular, seems to have proved a unanimous hit...

Among the series currently airing in the US, ‘Stranger Things’ is a hit with both Generation Z and Millennials, according to the latest report from YPulse, titled Media Consumption Monitor.*

This result is perhaps not surprising, since the show's fourth season has earned its place as the second most-watched series of all time on Netflix and the top English-language series on the platform.

The show has clocked more than 1 billion hours of viewing. Plus, ‘Stranger Things’ even inspired a Kate Bush comeback with the song ‘Running Up That Hill’, which featured prominently in the show's fourth season.

As a whole, younger viewers are more likely to list an animated series as their favourite, such as ‘Family Guy’, ‘The Simpsons’ or even ‘Rick and Morty’, which comes third in the Gen Z ranking.

According to the survey results, 35% of Generation Z respondents watch cartoons weekly or more often, compared to 21% of Millennials. The 18-24-year-olds also favoUr series with characters closer in age to their own, such as ‘Euphoria’, ‘Outer Banks’ and ‘Cobra Kai’.

Among Millennials, fantasy and sci-fi series are doing well. If ‘Stranger Things’ comes first, ‘House of the Dragon’, ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’, ‘The Walking Dead’ and ‘The Handmaid's Tale’ are all popular.

This group also seems to be more attracted to drama series, which 32% of them watch regularly, compared to 21% of Generation Z.

Finally, Netflix is once again the big winner of the poll, even managing to win over viewers with ‘Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story’, despite the controversy surrounding the miniseries.

While new shows such as ‘House of the Dragon’ have clearly appealed to audiences, viewers also remain loyal to older shows such as ‘Grey's Anatomy’ and ‘The Walking Dead’, across all generations.

Favourite currently airing TV series among US viewers aged 13-39

1. Stranger Things 
2. Grey’s Anatomy
3. House of the Dragon 
4. Cobra Kai 
5. Family Guy
6. Rick and Morty 
7. The Walking Dead 
8. Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story
9. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power 
10. The Handmaid’s Tale 

Favourite currently airing TV series among Gen Z viewers

1. Stranger Things
2. Cobra Kai
3. Rick and Morty
4. Outer Banks
5. The Walking Dead
6. Euphoria
7. Grey's Anatomy
8. Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story
9. The Simpsons
10. Family Guy

Favourite currently airing TV series among Millennials

1. Stranger Things
2. Grey's Anatomy
3. House of the Dragon
4. Family Guy
5. Cobra Kai
6. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
7. Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story
8. The Walking Dead
9. The Handmaid's Tale
10. Rick and Morty – The Vibes, November 8, 2022

*Survey of 1,500 Americans between the ages of 13 and 39, conducted in October 2022.