Netflix Tom Brady Roast Drove Huge Viewing, Says Greg Peters

The Netflix Tom Brady roast caused quite the splash and the streamer’s Co-CEO Greg Peters was delighted.

Peters used the comedy event as a key example of Netflix “adding more aspect to our offering” since the subscriber shock in 2022 that led to major questions around the streamer’s viability.

“[Events like The Roast of Tom Brady] can drive huge viewing and an even bigger conversation,” he told the Deloitte Media & Telecoms 2024 and Beyond Conference in London this morning.

The Brady roast caused a stir. A number of jokes were deemed to have crossed the line and Kim Kardashian, who used to date the star, was booed. Brady has since said that he regrets taking part because of the impact on his children.

Peters, who became Co-CEO 18 months ago, also flagged the upcoming Netflix WWE coverage along with the Queen’s Ball immersive experience for smash regal drama Bridgerton as examples of Netflix adapting, having “learned the hard way that we needed to add more aspect to our offering” in 2022.

He also flagged the diversity brought on by ads.

But Peters said the “most effective promotional tool” that Netflix has is “Netflix itself.”

He said trailers on the streaming platform generate more than 6 billion impressions per month on Netflix and stressed how far this reach spreads. “This [platform] is the go to place for so many people looking for entertainment,” he added.

Not just algorithms

Peters talked down Netflix’s reliance on algorithms for commissioning and said the streamer’s shows and movies are instead ordered by “small tight knit groups of execs” such as UK boss Anne Mensah.

He said “if it was as simple as data and algorithms we would have no flops but we do because it is a quintessentially human endeavor.”

“It is [our execs] jobs to understand audiences and diverse tastes,” he added. “No algorithm could have told you that.”

Netflix added 9.3 million subscribers in what was another strong Q1. In its quarterly letter to shareholders, Netflix made the surprising disclosure that it plans to stop reporting subscriber totals and average revenue per subscriber starting with its first quarter results in 2025.

Disney EMEA boss Jan Koeppen is also speaking at the London conference, along with Sky and broadcasting bosses.