Bluey Repeats as Most-Streamed US Show Despite No New Episodes
Australian kids' show Bluey dominated US streaming with 45.2B minutes despite no new episodes, proving short-form content drives repeat viewing for platforms.
Australian animated series Bluey maintained its position as the most-streamed program in the United States for 2025, accumulating 45.2 billion viewing minutes despite releasing no new episodes during the year, according to Nielsen's annual streaming data.
The Brisbane-produced children's show outperformed Grey's Anatomy (40.9 billion minutes) and Stranger Things (40 billion minutes) in total viewing time. However, the figure represents an 18.7% decline from 2024's 55.6 billion minutes, marking the first year-over-year decrease since the show's US launch.
Short-Form Strategy Drives Repeat Viewing
Bluey's performance is particularly notable given its catalog of just 154 eight-minute episodes, compared to Grey's Anatomy's 455 one-hour episodes. This translates to approximately 3.5 times higher per-episode engagement, indicating substantial repeat viewing by American families.
The show's brief episode format has proven effective for mobile-first family viewing patterns, according to Brian Fuhrer, Nielsen's SVP of product strategy. "Bluey proves acquired content can outperform originals when aligned with platform demographics," Fuhrer noted in Nielsen's announcement.
BBC Studios expanded Bluey's digital presence in 2025 by launching seven digital series totaling over 70 episodes, including Bluey Dancealongs and Bluey Book Reads. The official YouTube channel now exceeds 10 million subscribers, placing it in the top 1% of channels globally.
Complex Distribution Structure Behind Success
The show's international reach stems from a co-production agreement between Australia's ABC network, BBC Studios, and Disney+. Brisbane-based Ludo Studio retains creative control under the ABC and BBC co-commission structure, while BBC Studios manages global distribution and merchandising operations.
Disney+ has used Bluey's performance to dominate children's streaming demographics, capturing the number one position among both kids aged two to five and kids aged six to 11 in 2024 and 2025. The platform featured four of the top 10 children's titles in 2025, combining Bluey with other family content.
Animation represented six of 2025's top 20 streaming titles, with Family Guy (33.4 billion minutes) and SpongeBob SquarePants (34.3 billion minutes) also ranking highly. Total US streaming consumption reached 16.7 trillion minutes in 2025, a 19% increase from the previous year.
Financial Terms Exclude Original Broadcaster
The ABC network receives no financial benefit from Bluey's international success due to the original 2016 co-production agreement with BBC Studios. This arrangement has drawn criticism given the show's estimated $1.5 billion-plus in annual merchandise sales through BBC's licensing deals.
Creator Joe Brumm has stepped away from producing new series episodes to focus on a full-length Bluey feature film scheduled for theatrical and streaming release in 2027 through Disney. The timing of any new series episodes remains uncertain.
The show's continued dominance without fresh content demonstrates the strength of its existing catalog and family co-viewing appeal in the competitive US streaming market.
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