'Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story' Tops the Streaming Chart as October's Spooky Slate Arrives

For the first time in over a month, a new title sits atop the Samba Weekly Wrap Report Top 10: Netflix's Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story took the No. 1 slot in the chart covering the past week, after debuting in second place the previous week, The Wrap reported on Oct. 1 [1].

Monster is a Netflix anthology series offering fictionalized biographical accounts of famous murderers' upbringings. The current season follows the young woman in 1890s Massachusetts who was accused of murdering her parents with an ax. "It's perfect timing for Netflix as viewers start planning their Halloween costumes," The Wrap noted [1].

Hanging on to second place is Neagley on Amazon Prime Video, a spinoff of Amazon's hit series Reacher that follows a private investigator who uncovers a conspiracy. Reacher itself held the top spot for six consecutive weeks before vacating it this week — and it sticks around in ninth place despite ending its fourth season the previous week. The entire first season of Neagley was added to Amazon's library on Sept. 16, so both shows' chart positions come from sustained viewership without new episodes [1].

The rest of the streaming top 10

Netflix takes third with Unabomber, a scripted biographical film about the terrorist mail bomber Ted Kaczynski, boosted by a cast including Russell Crowe, Jacob Tremblay, Annabelle Wallis and Shailene Woodley. Special Ops: Lioness lands fourth as the spy thriller ended its third season — though it has not yet been renewed for a fourth despite being one of Paramount+'s biggest hits [1].

The Love Hypothesis, a new Amazon romcom, debuts in fifth: a modern enemies-to-lovers story set in a university research lab, adapted from a popular romance novel that itself started out as Star Wars fanfiction. Netflix's A Different World debuts sixth — a sequel to the 1980s sitcom (itself a spinoff of The Cosby Show) following students arriving at a prestigious HBCU. Paramount+'s Mobland moves up a slot to seventh in its second week; Netflix's Wonka's Golden Ticket, a reality competition on a set replicating the chocolate factory — chocolate river included — is eighth; and the HBO Max superhero drama Lanterns slides to tenth after its penultimate episode [1].

The Wrap Report draws on viewership trends from Samba's panel of more than 3 million households, balanced to the U.S. Census, covering both streaming and linear television [1]. On the linear chart, NBC's The Voice returned for its 30th season with three episodes charting (the highest at No. 2), pushing Dancing With the Stars to third; America's Got Talent's 21st season ended with a two-part finale at fourth and eighth; Big Brother's 28th season reached its final three contestants at fifth; Saturday Night Live returned for season 52 hosted by New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson; and Wheel of Fortune closed the chart at tenth [1].

October's horror slate is just getting started

The chart takeover lands at the start of a crowded spooky-season month. Netflix added the new East of Eden adaptation on Oct. 1, HBO Max launched its new drama War on Oct. 1, Mike Flanagan's Carrie series premieres on Prime Video on Oct. 7, Marvel's VisionQuest arrives on Disney+ on Oct. 14, and Peacock debuts Crystal Lake — the Friday the 13th prequel — on Oct. 15, according to the October streaming guide [2].

Paramount+ is leaning into fall too: Avatar: Seven Havens premiered Oct. 9, Tulsa King returns for season 4 on Oct. 16, and a new season of Dexter: Resurrection is on the way, MobileSyrup reported [3]. With Halloween viewership habits kicking in and a wave of horror-adjacent premieres arriving mid-month, next week's chart could look very different.

Terms

• Anthology series: a show in which each season tells a self-contained story, often with a new cast and subject.
• Samba TV panel: a viewership-measurement panel of more than 3 million U.S. households, balanced to U.S. Census demographics, used to estimate what people are actually watching across streaming and linear TV.

Reported with AI assistance from public sources; reviewed before publication. — Powered by Creytix.