Severance Season 2 Breaks Major Apple TV+ Record Even Before Finale
The Ben Stiller-directed sci-fi hit has now officially surpassed Apple TV+’s previous most successful show.
Launched in 2022, Severance has been among Apple TV+ ’s major hits ever since its first episode landed on the platform, but the second season went into a full promotion mode back in January, and, well, it worked.
The new installment arrived roughly 3 years after the first season’s release, making a long-awaited comeback to the screens accompanied by a promo campaign that even Severance fans didn’t quite expect.
From a pop-up office that imitated the severed floor’s one at Grand Central Terminal in New York to Apple CEO Tim Cook chiming in for Severance’s season 2 promo video, the show had lots of innovative ways to surprise fans, and it all paid off.
Severance Is Now the Most-Watched Show on Apple TV+
It’s been a month since Severance’s second season premiered on the platform, so the streamer had some time to get all the data together, suggesting there are some promising perspectives for Severance even before its second installment is wrapped up.
According to Deadline, the show “has broken Apple TV+ records, launching as the platform’s #1 series in history based on number of unique viewers from Jan. 17 through Feb. 17, 2025.” The season’s arrival also caused a major shift in the number of subscriptions with “a +126% increase in new subscribers” ahead of the first episode’s premiere.
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As the streaming service also confirmed via Deadline, Severance’s season 1 and half of season 2 have collectively accumulated more viewers than any other Apple TV+ show has ever had, with that including the Jason Sudeikis-led sports drama Ted Lasso which previously remained a record breaker.
Though the latter is still one of the most successful series produced by Apple TV+, such an outcome isn’t quite a surprise as, according to the streamer’s head of programming Matt Cherniss, Severance is an original and compelling story with a production team that succeeded in making the show “an extraordinary success and a cultural phenomenon.”
“The series has become an obsession for audiences all over the world and we can’t wait for people to continue to experience all the masterful twists and turns as the rest of the season unfolds,” he added, teasing some more shocking events in Severance season 2.
New episodes will land on Apple TV+ every Friday until March 21.