Spinoffs and sequels have always been prominent in the entertainment industry, but they are arguably more important than ever in the streaming wars. When platforms strike on a winning series, they find that adding to it with spinoffs is an excellent way to keep subscription payments coming in.
One of the latest examples of this has been the success of Vikings: Valhalla on Netflix. The original streaming platform swiftly moved for the rights to make it after Vikings ended, and it looks like this was an excellent decision.
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Vikings: Valhalla Has Impressive Viewing Figures
It was recently revealed that season two of Vikings: Valhalla was viewed for more than 205 million hours, putting it up there with the most-watched shows on the platform. Along with being a commercially viable offering for Netflix, the series from Jeb Stuart has garnered critical acclaim during its run so far.
The popularity of this series highlights how much of a winning formula spinoffs can be for streaming services in the modern age. When Vikings finished, viewers were hungry for more content about the Norse seafarers. By getting Vikings: Valhalla to screen shortly after its predecessor ended, Netflix was able to capitalize on the buzz from that show before people had forgotten about it.
This has been done with other shows on the platform as well, such as Narcos and Narcos Mexico. HBO Max has also had success with the formula and released House of the Dragon to satisfy the hole that was left when Game of Thrones finished.
Series Buoyed by Popularity of Vikings in the Mainstream
Of course, Vikings: Valhalla has also been helped by the overwhelming fascination that people have with the era. You only need to look through other sectors of the entertainment industry to see that the Viking genre is among the most popular.
For instance, there are numerous mobile apps that give users a taste of Viking life, with Vikings: War of Clans and Heroes of Valhalla a couple of the top titles on the market. The genre is also prevalent in the iGaming market, with Vikings Go Wild one of the top New Jersey online casino games. It can be found alongside other historical-themed slots like Spartacus: Gladiator of Rome and Cleopatra.
Season Three Will Air in 2024
Unfortunately for people who have enjoyed the Vikings spinoff, it is set to end after season three. Its predecessor lasted for six seasons and 89 episodes, so fans may have been hoping for more from the spinoff. The final season will be released sometime this year, with filming already having wrapped.
Due to the immense popularity of Vikings: Valhalla and the incredible scope of the historical era, there’s a good chance that there will be other spinoffs in the pipeline. Despite the offering ending with the Battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066 and the conclusion of the Viking Age, it would be interesting to explore the repercussions of that in another series.
Vikings: Valhalla may be coming to an end, but it could be followed by yet another spinoff. Creating new content from popular IPs is clearly the way forward in today’s streaming market, and the popularity of this series provides great evidence for that.