Analysts Believe Not Many Would
Netflix has found itself embroiled in controversy over the remarks made by the creator of one of its shows.
Netflix faces a testing time with influential tech leader Elon Musk joining an online campaign to “cancel” subscriptions to the streaming service, but analysts believe that only a small number of users might be leaving Netflix.
“Respectfully, I don’t believe a significant number of $NFLX subscribers will follow Elon’s lead and cancel their NFLX subscriptions,” Gary Black, co-founder of investment advisor firm The Future Fund, said in an X post on Thursday.
He argued that Netflix had cancelled Hamish Steele’s animated series “Dead End: Paranormal Park” in 2023, and the streaming site has not issued an official response to Musk’s post. The show is still available on Netflix.
Ross Gerber, CEO of Gerber Kawasaki Wealth and Investment Management, agreed: “No one is canceling their Netflix. That I’m sure of.”
In recent days, social media users pulled up one of Steele’s X posts from last month, where he referred to the deceased activist, Charlie Kirk, with profanity, which then brought to the fore some elements of the show that irked more users.
Several users have cancelled their subscriptions and are calling others to do the same, according to their social media posts. “Cancel Netflix for the health of your kids,” Musk said in an X post on Wednesday. In a separate post, he seemed upset that “Dead End” promotes pro-transgender messages to children, which is the growing online narrative.
Netflix stock is already showing signs of strain. Shares have fallen for three sessions straight, including a 2.3% drop on Wednesday after Musk’s X posts.
On Stocktwits, the retail sentiment for NFLX was ‘bearish’ as of early Thursday, the same as the previous day, and message volume surged 600% in the past 24 hours.
Several users were posting “Go Woke, Go Broke,” a new social media slogan that claims that companies embracing progressive or “woke” values risk losing customers and profits. It was also used in the context of American Eagle’s Sydney Sweeney ad and Cracker Barrel’s logo change, both of which sparked controversies.
Despite the recent weakness, Netflix stock is up 31.4% year-to-date.
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