Month: February 2024

Will the same Walking Dead audience be tuning in for this spin-off? 
Yes. We’re predicting that viewers will lean male (54%) and skew mostly older,  a profile in line with the other two most recent franchise extensions (Dead City and Daryl Dixon). These offshoots are, however, slightly more male than The Walking Dead proved to be in its early seasons (51% male).

What does The Ones Who Live have in common with the other TWD series?
Suspense and action. The #1 ratings driver for The Ones Who Live is the pervasive sense of risk and danger faced by its protagonists (Life in Danger, 134), a key element that also propelled interest in its sister shows. This new installment similarly leverages the franchise’s Distinctly Realized World (120) of post-apocalyptic chaos and its widespread Bloody Violence (120) that’s directed toward zombies and humans alike. These IP connections (IP Extension, 118) are also an important factor in the show’s bingeability.

What makes The Ones Who Live unique?
It shows that love conquers all. Rather than following a pair of enemies (Dead City), a loner (Daryl Dixon), or an entire mismatched group (Fear the Walking Dead, The Walking Dead: World Beyond), this franchise spin-off instead traces a married couple desperate to find each other after years of separation. The original The Walking Dead remained mum on the fates of both Rick and Michonne after the beloved characters departed the main storyline; The Ones Who Live will finally fill in the gaps, letting viewers in on what happened to each hero in the interim (Personal Backstory, 130) and offering up an Inspirational Story (127) of two survivors driven by Love (119) and Anticipation (119).

What’s standing in the protagonists’ way?
A powerful settlement with a sizable army. Rick has been living in a closed-off militaristic community all this time, and to reunite with wife Michonne, they both must fight to get past its vast Military Operation (149) with countless reserves of soldiers out for blood. This armed forces aspect of the story is the show’s top source of bingeability and is also unique within the Walking Dead franchise; rather than sharing this driver with Dead City or Daryl Dixon, The Ones Who Live instead keeps company here with historical war epics like Masters of the Air, modern political dramas like Fauda, and broader-scale sci-fi sagas like Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Falling Skies.

How does this main storyline play into the show’s ratings?
It pulls viewers in through the protagonists’ desires. In The Ones Who Live, both Rick and Michonne–and, by extension, audiences–are driven to learn the fate of the other (Curiosity, 123) so that they may finally reunite (Social Contact, 121) and reignite their missing love (Romance, 119; Family, 119). At the same time, they must fight against a powerful community to secure Rick’s freedom and their own future (Power, 119; Order, 119). Viewers will tune in eager to discover whether the pair is ultimately successful.

Who’s been watching this can’t-look-away series? 
Older women. We’re seeing an audience that’s heavily female (73%) and mostly older (63% aged 30+), a gender skew that’s very much in line with other popular reality dating shows such as The Bachelor, Married at First Sight, 90 Day Fiancé, Temptation Island, Love Island, and Bachelor in Paradise. Thanks to trends in streaming, however, Love Is Blind lands a bit younger than its linear-based counterparts (which run 80-91% aged 35+).

Why did so many viewers tune in for the show’s first season?
The high-concept matchmaking. On Love Is Blind, contestants are kept in separate rooms as they get to know each other; they can chat via speaker but are not allowed visuals and only meet face-to-face at the end. This means that players must make some Tough Decisions (127) in who they choose to pursue, judging chemistry (Romantic Tension, 119), Falling in Love (123), and potentially becoming engaged all sight-unseen. It is this process of blind pairing that has been driving the series’ stellar ratings since the beginning.

What sets the show apart from other reality dating series?
The moment of truth. Love Is Blind’s unique set-up builds to a nail-biting climax as the newly-engaged couples are finally allowed to see each other and test-drive coupledom at a resort retreat. The opportunity to see their favorite contestants trying to make it work in the real world (Married Life, 131)–as well as the chance that someone might turn tail and run (Broken Engagement, 145)–creates a singular draw for Love Is Blind that’s missing in shows focused solely on matchmaking (The Bachelor, The Bachelorette), physical attraction (Love Island, Too Hot to Handle, Bachelor in Paradise), or pre-paired couples (Married at First Sight, 90 Day Fiancé). These elements also make the show eminently bingeable.

What has kept the show running for what’s about to be six successful seasons?
Conflict. Once the couples have paired off and met each other, they’re launched into a trial run of life together, and the tensions that arise as they navigate their brand-new relationships (Romantic Conflict, 121), meet each other’s families (Family Conflict, 120), and plan their own weddings (Wedding Event, 119) drive the show’s longevity and keep viewers coming back season after season.

What’s making the international versions of this series so popular?
The addictive ups and downs. The Love Is Blind format has been successfully localized for both Brazil and Japan, and in those markets, the #1 driver of engagement is the Emotional Roller Coaster (both 160) viewing experience. Japanese and Brazilian audiences are right there alongside the contestants as they face the intense highs of love and the crushing lows of rejection.

Who’s been watching this inventive new series? 
We’re seeing an audience that leans male (56%) and is heavily older (71% aged 30+), a bit of a departure from writer Glover’s previous female-leaning series (Atlanta, Swarm). Instead, Mr. & Mrs. Smith straddles the line between more male-heavy action-based thrillers (Citadel, 24, The Old Man, Jack Ryan, all 62-64% male) and female-skewing spy dramas with relationship elements (The Americans, Homeland, Killing Eve, Chuck, Alias, all 50-59% female).
How is this series different from the earlier movie?
It flips the premise. In the Pitt-Jolie film, a staid, boring married couple are actually highly-trained spies ordered to assassinate each other; in the show, the titular couple begin as newly-hired agents directed to act as husband and wife as a plausible cover. The Romantic Relationship (116) that develops between them–as well as hints of the pair’s previously Troubled Pasts (113)–drive longevity for the series, providing an emotional story engine for future seasons.
Why are viewers tuning in?
For the action. Though the series emphasizes (and deconstructs) the pair’s evolving relationship, it’s actually the heightened, Stylized Action & Violence (160) and guns a’blazing firepower (Gun Violence, 141) that audiences most want to see–and coincidentally, the elements that Mr. & Mrs. Smith the series has most in common with its theatrical predecessor (IP Extension, 118).
What type of viewing experience are audiences anticipating?
An intense one. The spy thriller aspects of the show (Scary Situations, 127; Race Against Time, 124) are also what’s propelling its emotional engagement, with viewers looking for a sense of Surprise (120), Terror (116), Fear (112), and Vigilance (112) to keep them on the edge of their seats. In contrast, emotions surrounding the Smiths’ marriage as they bicker (Disapproval, 90), fight (Anger, 105), and fall in love (Love, 87) are less compelling.
What keeps viewers watching?
The characters. In addition to the general spy missions (Espionage, 124), Erskine’s prickly, quirky, Strong Female Character (137) in need of A New Beginning (117) as well as the cast’s overall Cultural Diversity (110) are propelling the show’s bingeability.