In a searing new report from The Hollywood Reporter, sources confirmed that Prime Video’s The Rings Of Power—thought to be one of the most expensive shows of all time with an approximate $465 million price tag attached to just the first season—is losing the viewership war to Netflix, HBO, and even its own Prime Video sister show The Boys.
The report states that Bezos’ big gambit scored just a 37% completion rate in the U.S., or in other words, only 37% of viewers who started the show actually finished it. That is… not great. (The report specifies that a “50% completion rate would be a solid but not spectacular result, according to insiders.”) Overseas, Rings had a 45% completion rate, which is a little better but still pretty abysmal.
For reference, Netflix tends to axe shows that come in around a 50% completion rate (or lower), as was the case with both 1899 and First Kill (via Forbes). The competing streamer also nabbed the top 10 spots for original series by minutes watched (according to Nielsen data, via the THR report) with Prime Video’s The Boys coming in 11th and Rings all the way down at number 15.
But is this pretty obvious failure being seen (or at least spoken of) as a failure over in Bezosland? Of course not! “This desire to paint the show as anything less than a success—it’s not reflective of any conversation I’m having internally,” said Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke, before adding that the second season will be more dramatic: “That’s a huge opportunity for us. The first season required a lot of setting up.” Tolkein always made it clear that it was really all about the journey and not the end result—we guess they’ve gotten at least that much right!
