Paramount Global is advancing a clear shift in focus—from traditional TV roots to an expanded streaming identity under Paramount+. This transformation includes a growing investment in original films and premium series, as seen with recent moves like the integration with Showtime and strategic partnerships bolstering its global library. In 2023 alone, Paramount+ increased its original content hours by 38%, signaling a sharper turn toward exclusive productions, while continuing to carry legacy franchises.
Despite the evolution, subscriber behavior tells a different story. Many users still gravitate toward comfort-viewing staples and iconic TV titles. In Nielsen's Q3 2023 survey of U.S. streamers, nearly 60% of Paramount+ viewers listed classic series as a primary reason for their subscription—more than on competing platforms like Hulu, which leans heavier on next-day broadcast availability.
So here’s the real question: as Paramount+ reinvents itself, which shows continue to embody the brand’s identity? Let’s explore the ten essential series that still anchor the platform, both culturally and commercially.
Streaming services evolved rapidly from a novelty to a necessity. What began as a way to avoid late fees and postal delays—think Netflix’s DVD model—mutated into a global, multi-platform ecosystem dominated by subscription video-on-demand (SVOD). Hulu premiered in 2008 as a joint venture bringing network content online the day after broadcast; Netflix followed with its streaming-only plan in 2010. Paramount entered the scene later, but timed its transition to align with a market hungry for recognizable IPs and original storytelling.
Paramount+, launched in March 2021 as a rebranded and expanded version of CBS All Access, emerged from ViacomCBS’s deep library of content. Unlike Netflix or Hulu, which built early momentum on licensed content, Paramount+ leaned into its own extensive network and movie catalog. From CBS to MTV, Nickelodeon to BET, the streamer structured itself as both a heritage vault and a new frontier for originals.
Retention hinges on more than just producing new shows. Services hold subscribers by cultivating a sense of identity, often anchored by franchises. HBO Max, for example, relies heavily on DC Universe and Game of Thrones derivatives. Paramount+ mirrors this by centering its strategy around Star Trek, SpongeBob, and Yellowstone. These aren't just popular series—they operate as content ecosystems that encourage binge cycles and community discussion.
A curated catalog achieves two goals at once: it establishes a brand's narrative voice and keeps user churn in check. According to Antenna’s subscriber data, churn rates in Q4 2023 for platforms with fewer flagship titles hovered 10–15% higher than those with curated franchises and consistent release schedules.
As cable TV quietly recedes into obsolescence, the flexibility of streaming now leads. Consumers left bundled channels for standalone apps. The shift was quantitative and psychological—viewers moved from what’s-on-right-now to what-do-I-want-to-watch. Paramount+ repositioned for this shift by highlighting on-demand franchises and introducing exclusive streaming-only editions of formerly broadcast-only shows.
No longer does a show need a prime-time slot to succeed. It needs relevance, rewatchability, and an audience ready to hit ‘Next Episode.’ Paramount+ has adjusted its pace, embracing bingeability while still experimenting with weekly drops for flagship titles to extend social conversation.
Paramount+ has anchored its strategy around dual priorities: mining nostalgia and cultivating fresh IPs. This mix creates a layered content identity that feels both familiar and forward-thinking. Franchises like Star Trek and SpongeBob SquarePants serve as foundational pillars, regularly refreshed through spinoffs and reboots that extend their multigenerational appeal. For example, introducing Kamp Koral brought early-2000s viewers back while onboarding a younger audience unfamiliar with the original series.
Alongside these legacy titles, Paramount continues to push boundaries with original programming like The Good Fight and Evil, which venture into politically sharp and psychologically complex terrain. These shows expand the platform’s identity beyond comfort viewing, positioning Paramount+ as a destination for boundary-pushing storytelling.
With streaming competition intensifying, Paramount+ has overhauled its user interface to prioritize discoverability. The homepage now surfaces more content upfront with dynamic rows tailored to user behavior and trending titles. For instance, a returning user might see a "Continue Watching" row layered above a mix of "Because You Watched" and editorially curated suggestions. Each row updates in real-time based on engagement metrics and genre preferences.
The design removes excessive layering, reducing click-depth from homepage to playback. Users can access a show directly from surface-level previews, bypassing redundant menus. Navigation is now genre-first, with categories like "Fan Favorites," "Reboots & Revivals," and "Critically Acclaimed Originals" nestled prominently across platforms—web, mobile, and smart TVs.
Paramount+ has overhauled its recommendation engine with hybrid curation: real-time algorithmic tracking now works in tandem with human editorial input. That means viewers see classic episodes alongside high-performing new releases, linked by theme, cast, or genre.
Everything in the interface supports Paramount’s strategy: build on its studio legacy, layer in bold new voices, and surface it all in a design that meets users where their attention already lives.
Paramount+ has undergone major shifts, but a select few shows continue to ground its identity. These titles not only attract consistent viewer engagement—they also articulate the platform’s strategic commitment to brand legacy, storytelling diversity, and subscriber retention. Here are 10 shows that still define Paramount+.
Debuting in 2017, Star Trek: Discovery marked the franchise’s ambitious return to serialized storytelling. As the flagship of CBS All Access—now Paramount+—it spearheaded the platform’s original content strategy. It continues to anchor the Star Trek universe, which now spans several spinoffs, underscoring Paramount’s long-term investment in serialized science fiction. The show’s rich production values and philosophical underpinnings reinforce Paramount+ as a destination for prestige sci-fi.
While the main series streams on Peacock due to licensing deals, Yellowstone remains integral to Paramount+'s ecosystem through exclusive spinoffs like 1883 and 1923. Taylor Sheridan's gripping American saga connects directly to the streamer’s identity by blending Western heritage with contemporary drama. Its success advanced Paramount’s strategy of building interconnected universes tailored for high viewer loyalty.
Derived from CBS’s The Good Wife, The Good Fight established Paramount+ as a platform capable of bold, politically charged storytelling. Its legal procedural roots evolved into a sharp societal commentary, directly aligning with Paramount’s strategy of retaining prestige drama audiences previously nurtured on network television. It served as an early proof point for the platform’s creative ambition.
For younger audiences, few animated franchises offer the staying power of SpongeBob SquarePants. Paramount+ builds on this legacy with Kamp Koral, which explores deeper character backstories while introducing 3D animation. These shows serve as keystones of parent company Nickelodeon’s synergy with Paramount+, reinforcing a multigenerational appeal and deepening brand loyalty among family viewers.
The rebooted iCarly rides a wave of millennial nostalgia while modernizing its premise for the digital age. By retaining original cast members and updating its themes to reflect adult issues, the revival nails a balance between familiarity and relevance. It exemplifies Paramount+’s use of cross-generational IP to win back lapsed audiences and attract new subscribers with built-in fanbases.
Originally airing on CBS, SEAL Team transitioned to Paramount+ after four seasons—a move that revealed the streamer’s data-backed bet on loyalty-driven content migration. The military drama appeals to viewers seeking high-intensity, mission-driven narratives, and its consistent performance highlights Paramount+’s strategy of leveraging known broadcast brands to fortify its exclusive catalog.
Although not exclusive to Paramount+, the 2017 limited event run of Twin Peaks remains an iconic feather in the platform’s cap due to its Showtime heritage. Creatively unrestrained and deeply surreal, its David Lynch vision stands as a benchmark for boundary-pushing content within the Paramount ecosystem. The series draws in cinephilic audiences and solidifies the streamer’s cultural credibility.
Another massive success from Taylor Sheridan, Mayor of Kingstown supplies a gritty look at systemic corruption in an American prison town. Its serialized structure and morally complex themes resonate with viewers craving realism and emotional gravity. The show reinforces Paramount+’s commitment to original drama with staying power and strong weekly followings.
With horror, theology, and mystery coiling tightly together, Evil defies genre boundaries. After two seasons on CBS, it moved to Paramount+, where the freedom of a streamer allowed darker, more nuanced storytelling. It captures the platform’s capacity to house unexpected, layered series that would struggle within traditional broadcast frameworks, expanding its genre appeal.
With its vast back catalog and ongoing seasons, Survivor continues to be one of the most-watched unscripted shows among Paramount+ viewers. More than a nostalgic relic, it serves as a long-tail content magnet, driving engagement with binge-worthy access to decades of tribal councils, alliances, and epic blindsides. Its enduring popularity supports Paramount+’s hybrid model of current episodes plus archival treasure.
Paramount+ treats Star Trek: Discovery not just as a rebooted series but as a cornerstone of its science fiction lineup. When the show launched in 2017, it marked a significant turning point—not just for the franchise, but for CBS All Access, which eventually became Paramount+. Discovery became the first Trek series created exclusively for streaming, making it a trailblazer in both format and distribution.
Set roughly a decade before the events of the original Star Trek series, Discovery offered a polished, serialized narrative with high production values and an ambitious storyline that emphasized diversity, diplomacy, and conflict in the far reaches of space. By the time Season 3 transported the crew nearly a thousand years into the future, the show had fully committed to reimagining its mythos while staying rooted in the moral complexity that defines the franchise.
Exclusivity remains the most powerful lever Paramount+ pulls with Star Trek: Discovery. The platform has released five seasons of the show, maintaining a consistent subscriber lure with each premiere. When Paramount Global pulled the series from international platforms like Netflix in 2021 to house it solely on Paramount+, it wasn’t a gamble—it was a calculated move to consolidate fan engagement under one roof.
A report from ViacomCBS Q4 2021 earnings disclosed that Paramount+ gained 9.4 million new subscribers in that quarter alone, pushing its total to over 32.8 million. The timing coincided with increases in Trek content—Discovery leading the lineup. Analysts at MoffettNathanson noted that genre content, science fiction in particular, plays a disproportionate role in subscriber acquisition, particularly among younger, male audiences seeking serialized narratives.
Paramount+ didn't stop with Discovery. The streaming expansion of Star Trek includes Strange New Worlds, Picard, and the animated Lower Decks. But Discovery consistently acts as the anchor—its blend of legacy and progression encapsulates what Paramount+ aims to be. It's not nostalgia alone; it's innovation with roots.
Years into the streaming wars, Discovery has become emblematic of what it means to go all-in on original IP. While Paramount+ continues to evolve, one thing holds firm: warp drives, phasers, and Federation ideals still power the ship.
Yellowstone does more than fill a programming slot—it defines the ethos of Paramount’s current streaming narrative. As a contemporary western created by Taylor Sheridan and John Linson, the show zeroes in on power, bloodlines, and land control in Montana, wrapped in gripping cinematography and a no-frills moral code. Since its debut in 2018, it has played an outsized role in drawing viewers toward the Paramount brand, becoming the bedrock of the network's modern drama portfolio.
Despite initial episodes premiering on Paramount Network (a separate linear channel), Yellowstone's cultural cachet and viewer demand have been strategically adapted for Paramount+ through spin-offs and aggressive marketing. Prequels like 1883 and 1923 launched exclusively on Paramount+, expanding the Dutton family saga across centuries and syncing neatly with the platform’s commitment to serialized, universe-based storytelling. Traffic surged accordingly—1923 claimed the most-watched premiere on Paramount+ in its release window, according to data from Paramount Global’s Q4 2022 earnings report.
Marketing materials for Paramount+ regularly elevate Yellowstone and its prequels, threading western mythology directly into the service’s identity. Character-focused teasers, behind-the-scenes featurettes, and Sheridan-fronted promotional videos dominate the digital channels. The franchise occupies homepage banners and curated rows under headers like “Bold Originals” or “Only on Paramount+.” This visibility isn’t accidental—it reflects viewer affinity for deep-rooted, serialized drama interwoven with Americana iconography.
In effect, Yellowstone's success has bled into Paramount+’s wider commissioning strategy. The streamer doubled down on Sheridan’s creative vision, greenlighting projects like Mayor of Kingstown and Lawmen: Bass Reeves. These shows, while narratively distinct, carry tonal and thematic signatures that trace back to Yellowstone: conflicts layered in silence, familial loyalty, and durable landscapes that act like characters.
Ask anyone at Paramount which title anchors the service’s modern reputation, and the answer consistently points back to Yellowstone. It’s not simply a show. It’s the prototype by which the platform frames its brand of prestige American storytelling.
When The Good Fight launched in 2017, it didn’t quietly continue the legacy of its network predecessor, The Good Wife. Instead, it exploded onto the scene with fierce political commentary, surreal storytelling, and a tone unbound by traditional television constraints. Developed by Michelle and Robert King, the series didn’t just step off the CBS broadcast stage—it redefined the expectations for scripted originals on what was then CBS All Access, now Paramount+.
Carrying over familiar faces like Christine Baranski’s stalwart Diane Lockhart, the show kept core fans engaged while it spun increasingly urgent legal and political storylines drawn directly from headlines. Yet, this wasn't cable-level edgy—it was something sharper and louder, a series that made full use of its streaming freedom. Episodes tackled misinformation, systemic racism, and constitutional crisis with unflinching perspective, while blending absurdism with realism in ways a network procedure never could.
The Good Fight did more than evolve creatively; it functioned as a strategic bridge for CBS. It brought over an audience who trusted the Kings’ legal storytelling but were hesitant to subscribe to a streaming service. The show’s presence gave CBS All Access—and later Paramount+—legitimacy in the eyes of older viewers transitioning into the on-demand ecosystem. In survey research conducted by Parrot Analytics in 2020, The Good Fight ranked in the top 7% of all digital original series by demand in the United States, outperforming expectations for a drama with political themes and niche genre tactics.
As Paramount+ continues to evolve, The Good Fight remains a benchmark—proof that a procedural can embrace radical transformation and help define a streaming service in the process.
Paramount+ continues to benefit from the enduring power of SpongeBob SquarePants, a property that remains one of the most recognizable and profitable in children’s entertainment. First aired in 1999 on Nickelodeon, the series has transcended its original audience, becoming both a cultural touchstone for millennials and a constant favorite for new generations of kids. This multigenerational love translates directly into retention and cross-age appeal on the platform.
According to ViacomCBS's 2021 earnings report, SpongeBob content helped drive a 70% increase in engagement in the kids and family segment after Paramount+ launched. It's not simply about eyeballs—it’s about viewer hours, repeat watches, and durable emotional connection.
Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years expands the character universe with a CGI-animated prequel, offering a modern animation style and fresh storylines while preserving the bizarre, often absurd humor that defines the franchise. By moving into prequel territory, Paramount+ isn't just serving children—it’s catering to families watching together, capitalizing on nostalgia while making space for new narratives.
The success of Kamp Koral shows how a streamer with legacy IPs can remake loyalty across age brackets. With characters like Patrick, Sandy, and Squidward appearing in their younger versions, Kamp Koral not only taps into familiarity but also extends the life of a brand capable of supporting spinoffs, merchandise, and global distribution.
Looking for a reason why so many users keep Paramount+ on their monthly streaming list? The sea sponge and his pineapple under the sea still have a firm grip on streaming culture—and the analytics prove it.
Reintroducing a beloved franchise, the rebooted iCarly anchors Paramount+ in a unique space between millennial nostalgia and Gen Z sensibilities. Originally launched in 2007, the original series became a defining Nickelodeon property during the early years of social media. In contrast, the reboot debuted in 2021 on Paramount+ and immediately distinguished itself by aging with its audience.
The new iteration doesn’t reset the clock—it advances the story. Carly Shay, still played by Miranda Cosgrove, now navigates adulthood in a hyper-connected world where influencers dominate digital culture. Familiar characters return: Freddie Benson (Nathan Kress) now co-parenting and rebooting tech ventures; Spencer Shay (Jerry Trainor) still delightfully offbeat, but now fabulously wealthy. Surrounding them, new characters reflect the shifting cultural landscape, signaling a broader commitment by the streamer to representation and current relevance.
This isn't just a play for older viewers longing for their childhood favorites. By embracing serialized arcs, subtle social commentary, and layered humor, the reboot reconfigures a traditionally episodic, tween-targeted sitcom into a contemporary streaming comedy. Paramount+ capitalizes on tools unavailable in the cable era—episodic bingeing, looser content restrictions, and complex character-building over multi-season arcs.
Ratings alone don’t capture its resonance. The show taps into a trend visible across multiple platforms: legacy IP infused with modern-day storytelling. According to Parrot Analytics, demand for the iCarly reboot ranked in the top 2.7% of all television shows globally in its first year, reflecting a high degree of audience engagement relative to supply.
With iCarly, Paramount+ demonstrates how to extract new value from existing assets. The reboot resists replicating its predecessor and instead evolves the premise. Every callback—from spaghetti tacos to the web show within the show—balances sentimentality with self-awareness. It’s a signal that Paramount+ isn’t just preserving its legacy; it’s actively repurposing it to win in a fiercely competitive streaming world.
SEAL Team emerged as a dependable force on CBS, launching in 2017 as a military-themed procedural driven by character depth and tactical precision. When it shifted exclusively to Paramount+ after its fourth season, the show didn’t just survive the transition—it embodied it. In doing so, it brought with it a loyal base of traditional broadcast viewers now adapting to streaming behavior.
This migration speaks directly to the core of Paramount+’s evolving identity. Unlike many streaming originals that aim to disrupt storytelling norms, SEAL Team sustains a familiar episodic structure. Each mission-based arc follows elite Navy SEALs as they balance operational demands with personal sacrifice, but the move to streaming opened creative doors. Episodes became slightly longer. Character arcs deepened. The narrative gained breathing room—less confined by the 42-minute runtime standard of network TV.
Audience data confirms the show's sustained resonance. In Q4 2021—the first full quarter after it became a Paramount+ exclusive—demand for SEAL Team remained in the top 0.2% of all TV series in the U.S., according to Parrot Analytics. A strong completion rate, often over 70% per episode, indicated committed viewership.
What makes SEAL Team unique among Paramount+ offerings lies not in novelty but in its consistency. It preserves the tonal discipline of broadcast military dramas while leveraging the freedom of a new distribution model. The result bridges generational viewing habits. Older demographics, less inclined toward experimental content, find the familiarity they expect. Meanwhile, younger viewers coming for the action stay for the emotional gravity and strategic realism.
As Paramount+ continues refining its programming direction, SEAL Team marks a clear note: not every defining show must reinvent the wheel. Some, like this one, hold their value precisely because they don’t.
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