Viewers open up their Netflix account and flip through the homepage to find something new to binge. As they scroll through the different categories like “Popular on Netflix,” “Top 10 in the U.S Today,” “Netflix Originals,” and “Trending Now,” they have a wide variety of shows and movies to choose from. The first thing to pop up on their screen is the series, “The Queen’s Gambit.” After watching the seven episode series, viewers swipe over to Amazon or Ebay to buy their very own chess set.
The Netflix Effect has taken hold of society with shows like “The Queen’s Gambit” and “Bridgerton.” The Netflix Effect is when a show makes an activity or lifestyle famous overnight due to the millions of subscribers binge watching a new series. After the success of “The Queen’s Gambit,” the sales of chess sets rose by 215% on Ebay, including both wooden and vintage sets. Online gaming sites like Chess.com have also risen in popularity since the release of the show. Then after the release of the latest period drama, “Bridgerton,” many viewers began to romanticize life in the 19th century and started looking into buying corsets and stays on Etsy and at Victoria Secret. The show has created so much buzz that there’s even a TikTok musical based off the show with songs sung by artist Abigail Barlow.
Society letting the entertainment industry influence them isn’t new, but Netflix has become an express train for experiencing new movies and shows. Aspects of these series are quickly being integrated into the daily lives of everyone and are being talked about on social media platforms, the news and even other shows. The Netflix Effect started to become apparent at the beginning of lockdown when shows like “The Tiger King” and “Outer Banks” were released. When the entrancing show starring Joe Exotic and Carole Baskins came out, many viewers plunged into the world of tigers, wanting to visit tiger exhibits and even have their own pet tiger. The tiger king craze even landed Carole Baskins a spot on the hit show “Dancing with the Stars,” as viewers wanted to know more behind the scandal of what happened to Don Lewis. The name Joe Exotic has infiltrated the media to the point where he was even mentioned on the national news when they were reporting on the last few individuals that Trump pardoned before the inauguration of President Joe Biden. To Carole Baskins delight, Joe Exotic was not released from prison.
After the period of black, orange and white stripes, the summer hit, “Outer Banks,” made many viewers want to live “The Pogue Life.” The life of a pogue on the Outer Banks is characterized by the working class that make a living off the tourist industry compared to the rich kooks who have control over the island. At the end of watching the adventures of John B., JJ, Kiara and Pope on the HMS Pogue, fans ran to order their very own puka shell and conch shell necklace to try and have an essence of the small town beach vibes.
The Netflix Effect is not going away anytime soon. Netflix has promised to release one high profile movie a week, including both Netflix Originals as well as other movies and shows they have purchased to display on their platform. With all this new content planned for 2021, no one really knows what the future holds for the next avant-garde trend.
