Most-Watched Streaming Original in 2025: Love Island USA

Luminate, a data research company, recently released its year-end 2025 film and TV report, which had some surprising findings. According to the report, Peacock’s “Love Island USA” was the most-watched streaming original TV season of the year, with a 150% increase in viewership compared to the previous year.

This marks a significant milestone for “Love Island USA” as the first unscripted series to top Luminate’s annual rankings. While Netflix still remains the leader in TV streaming, with six of the top 10 series in the overall rankings, its share of U.S. original content viewing time dropped below 60%. On the other hand, competitors like HBO Max, Paramount+, and Amazon Prime Video saw gains in their viewership.

Some of the key shows that contributed to the success of Netflix’s rivals include HBO Max’s “The Pitt,” Apple TV’s “Your Friends & Neighbors,” Hulu’s “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” and Paramount+’s “Landman.”

Interestingly, the report also highlighted a shift in viewing habits, with the weekly rollout model gaining popularity over the traditional all-at-once binge-watching approach. In fact, six of the top 10 highest-retention scripted releases were released on a weekly basis. Overall, people are watching more TV than ever before, with hours viewed for original series increasing by 18% from 17 billion in 2024 to over 20 billion in 2025.