Vince Gilligan, creator of Breaking Bad, has a new hit on his hands: Pluribus may have arrived under a cloak of secrecy, but it turns out mystery was the perfect marketing strategy.
After years of hush-hush development, a premise that’s tough to explain without sounding slightly unhinged, and a title many viewers had to Google, the show has officially become Apple TV’s most-watched drama series launch ever. Yes — even surpassing Severance season 2, which previously held the crown.
Just how popular is it?
According to Apple, Pluribus premiered to record-breaking global viewership across more than 100 territories, with especially strong numbers in the U.S., the U.K., Canada, India, France, Germany, Mexico, Brazil, and Australia. Not bad for a series centered on “the most miserable person on Earth.”
And it’s not just Apple’s internal data giving Pluribus bragging rights. Nielsen’s Streaming Content Ratings – which track minutes viewed – are expected to confirm the record once official numbers drop. Meanwhile, Luminate has already reported that the show logged 6.4 million viewing hours in its first seven days in the U.S., impressive considering only two episodes were available at launch.
There’s even been anecdotal chaos: apparently the Apple TV app crashed for some users on premiere night because so many people tried to watch at once. A happiness apocalypse on screen, a streaming mini-apocalypse off screen.
What's it about?
So what exactly is drawing in all these viewers? Gilligan’s signature blend of genre-bending storytelling and humanist weirdness certainly helps. The series stars Better Call Saul’s Rhea Seehorn as Carol Sturka, a woman whose profound misery somehow becomes humanity’s last hope in a world drowning in too much happiness. It’s darkly funny, oddly moving, and just self-aware enough to spark endless conversation threads.
Apple’s head of programming, Matt Cherniss, praised the show’s “inventive premise” and Seehorn’s magnetic performance, adding that watching audiences get hooked has been “a thrill.” And with the fifth episode dropping this week – the momentum is far from over.
Fans can also dive deeper into the universe through a newly released chapter from Bloodsong of Wycaro on Apple Books — a bonus treat for anyone already theorising about where Gilligan’s latest sci-fi puzzle box is heading.
When and where can I watch it?
Pluribus is available to stream exclusively on AppleTV. New episodes will premiere weekly every Friday until the finale on 26 December 2025.
