“Drag Race” and other reality TV shows poised to help retain viewers as scripted pipeline dries up
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As the Writers Guild of America and studios continue their ongoing dispute into its third week, the scale of the strike is becoming unprecedented. But because the strike primarily affected scripted content, streamers can rely more heavily on unscripted shows like “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and “The Voice” to fill the gap.
Although most streaming services have a stockpile of scripted content to be released in these dry months, the longer the strike lasts, the more likely it is that delivery of new scripted content will be slowed and eventually taken out of line. The lack of new scripted content may increase consumption of unscripted shows as viewers look for alternatives to their usual binge selections. However, the need for a diverse and abundant supply of unscripted content to substitute scripted shows poses a significant logistical challenge.
Given the previous strike in 2007–2008, there was a significant increase in viewership of unreleased content during the period of stalled content production. This historical precedent prompts us to consider which streaming services are best prepared for an extended shutdown. An analysis of the service’s content catalog and their reliance on scripted versus unscripted content provides some insight into their preparedness
Demand and Supply for Unscripted Shows, Q1 2023, US (Parrot Analytics)
As predicted, Discovery+ continues to dominate in terms of the share of supply and demand for unpublished TV content. The service’s expertise in documentaries and reality TV, which are among the most popular genres of unscripted TV, gives it a unique advantage. After Discovery+, Mayur stands out with more than 40% of its shows being unscripted. These shows contribute to more than a third of the total catalog demand. Peacock benefits from a wide range of Bravo and NBC reality shows, including “The Voice,” the most sought-after unscripted show in America this year.
Paramount+ and Hulu both see significant demand share from unscripted content at 22.4%. Both services include “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” the second most sought-after unscripted show of the year. In addition, Paramount+ benefits from several CBS shows such as “Survivor” and “The Amazing Race,” while Hulu hosts a considerable amount of licensed content, including “Impractical Jokers.”
Demand for Unscripted Shows, Jan-Apr 2023, US (Parrot Analytics)
In contrast, services such as Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max and Netflix rely less on unscripted shows, as indicated by their lower shares of demand and supply for the genre. The impending combination of HBO Max and Discovery+ as Max on Tuesdays will result in a more balanced content mix by combining Discovery+’s unscripted content with HBO Max’s acclaimed dramas.
Daniel Quinod is a Senior Data Analyst at Parrot Analytics, a RapPro Partner. For more from Parrot Analytics, Visit the Data & Analytics Hub,
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