Picture: Paramount+
The streaming wars have taken a weird turn in 2023, with many of Netflix’s biggest competitors taking their foot off the gas. One of those strange things is Netflix picking up the licenses to Originals like School Spirits from Paramount+.
Important note: This article only applies to Netflix in the United States – it’s currently unclear whether more regions will acquire the series in November 2023.
Cobra Kai star Peyton List leads the cast of the eight-episode supernatural teen drama and plays the role of Maddie Nears, a girl stuck in the afterlife investigating her own death.
Rounding out the cast are Kristian Flores, Milo Manheim, Spencer MacPherson, Kiara Pichardo, Sarah Yarkin, Nick Pugliese, and Rainbow Wedell.
The series premiered on Paramount+ weekly from March through April this year. It picked up solid reviews from critics and currently carries a 7.6 rating on IMDb.
Awesomeness is the production company behind the show mostly known for its lineup of teen series. They’re a subsidiary company of Paramount+. In January 2021, Netflix acquired a few of their shorter series, including nabbing the US licenses to The Unsettling, Zac & Mia, Love Daily, and My Dead Ex for a fixed period of time.
As confirmed today, Netflix will be licensing the show’s first season on November 30th for an unspecific period. The show will continue to reside on Paramount+ while also on Netflix.
Why is Paramount licensing School Spirits to Netflix?
In 2023, we’ve seen numerous studios license some of their older shows to Netflix, where they’ve gained massive new popularity. In the case of School Spirits, we are likely seeing it licensed out to Netflix to drum up interest in the second season that was ordered in June 2023 due to begin production in 2024.
You may recall Paramount experimenting with licensing the first seasons of Evil and The Unicorn to Netflix back in 2020, so it’s not particularly new. Paramount also licensed a large selection of its Nickelodeon library to Netflix.
In October 2023, Netflix also picked up the license to Showtime’s Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber, which was removed from Paramount+ earlier in the year.
Picture: Paramount+
Will you be checking out School Spirits on Netflix when it drops on November 30th? Let us know in the comments. For the full list of November 2023 titles, check out our guide.
