The Boroughs Season 2: First Week Viewership, Netflix Renewal Status & What to Expect

Co-creators Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews have already teased their multi-season plans for Netflix’s sci-fi hit ‘The Boroughs’ and explain that shocking Season 1 ending.

Picture Credit: Netflix

Described as Stranger Things with senior citizens, Netflix’s new sci-fi drama The Boroughs has proven an instant stand-out. Will it get renewed for Season 2? It feels more than likely, especially with the creators teasing their three-season plan. Here’s everything we know so far about the future of the series.

After ending Stranger Things, Matt and Ross Duffer are already pursuing new projects at Netflix under their Upside Down Pictures umbrella. Earlier this year, they saw the release of Something Very Bad is Going to Happen, a brilliant, creepy, and atmospheric horror drama. In their latest foray as executive producers, they take viewers inside The Boroughs, an idyllic, sun-drenched oasis in the heart of the New Mexico desert.

There, we follow ex-engineer and widower Sam Cooper (Alfred Molina), a largely unwilling resident of the retirement community; all he wants to do is leave. However, he soon becomes embroiled in a conspiracy within the walls of the Boroughs involving mysterious monsters and a sinister managerial underbelly (because like Stranger Things, the humans are always the real villains). Before long, he finds himself teaming up with other residents to get to the bottom of the conspiracy. Sam finds companionship and support in his fellow community members, most notably Judy (Alfre Woodard), Art (Clarke Peters), and Wally (Denis O’Hare).

Has Netflix renewed The Boroughs for Season 2?

Official Renewal Status: Pending / Active Development (Last updated: May 2026)

Netflix has not officially renewed The Boroughs for Season 2 just yet, but it seems to be only a matter of time before the streamer announces a continuation. The Boroughs certainly didn’t debut as a limited series; there’s a very clear intention to keep the story going, which is heavily teased in the final moments of Episode 8.

One highly positive sign is that Season 2 is already in active development. According to the WGA directory, Season 2 (2027/2028) is listed. While this is not a confirmation of a renewal from Netflix, it strongly suggests a new installment is being mapped out. This isn’t uncommon for big-budget sci-fi shows, which often get early scripts together so production can hit the ground running the moment an official green light is given.

 

How well is The Boroughs performing on Netflix?

For any series to score a renewal, it all comes down to the viewership data. The first batch of numbers are in, and for its debut week, The Boroughs claimed the #2 spot globally on Netflix with 5,600,000 views (35,300,000 hours viewed). You can read a full breakdown of its debut in our Top 10 report here.

On the daily top 10 charts, the series debuted at #5 globally, placing behind established heavy hitters like Berlin S2, Nemesis, The WONDERfools, and Sold Out On You.

Will 5.6 million views be enough to justify a second season? Given how this compares against other season 1 debuts from previous years and their ultimate fates, it may turn out that these numbers might spell trouble for a big-budget, Duffer Brothers-produced sci-fi series. It is a slightly softer opening than one might expect for a show of this pedigree, meaning The Boroughs will need to show incredibly strong legs and positive word-of-mouth growth in its second and third weeks to secure its future.

Netflix Viewership Comparison – UNTAMED – Season 1, The Night Agent – Season 1, Man on Fire – Season 1, 3 Body Problem – Season 1, Man on Fire – Season 1 and 18 more Netflix titles (1-week analysis)

Cumulative views over 1 weeks for 23 Netflix titles: UNTAMED – Season 1, The Night Agent – Season 1, Man on Fire – Season 1, 3 Body Problem – Season 1, Man on Fire – Season 1, Black Doves – Season 1, 1899 – Season 1, The Diplomat – Season 1, The Waterfront – Season 1, The Abandons – Season 1, Ransom Canyon – Season 1, Nemesis – Season 1, The Recruit – Season 1, Nemesis – Season 1, Obliterated – Season 1, PULSE – Season 1, The Boroughs – Season 1, The Lincoln Lawyer – Season 1, Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen, The Brothers Sun – Season 1, KAOS – Season 1, Dead Boy Detectives – Season 1, Big Mistakes – Season 1. Combined total: 194,700,000 views.

Netflix cumulative views ranking for UNTAMED – Season 1, The Night Agent – Season 1, Man on Fire – Season 1, 3 Body Problem – Season 1, Man on Fire – Season 1 and 18 more Netflix titles over 1 weeks.

Title
Opening Week Views
Rank

UNTAMED – Season 1
24,600,000
1

The Night Agent – Season 1
20,600,000
2

Man on Fire – Season 1
11,000,000
3

3 Body Problem – Season 1
11,000,000
4

Man on Fire – Season 1
11,000,000
5

Black Doves – Season 1
10,800,000
6

1899 – Season 1
10,800,000
7

The Diplomat – Season 1
8,500,000
8

The Waterfront – Season 1
8,300,000
9

The Abandons – Season 1
7,300,000
10

Ransom Canyon – Season 1
7,200,000
11

Nemesis – Season 1
7,100,000
12

The Recruit – Season 1
7,100,000
13

Nemesis – Season 1
7,100,000
14

Obliterated – Season 1
7,000,000
15

PULSE – Season 1
6,500,000
16

The Boroughs – Season 1
5,600,000
17

The Lincoln Lawyer – Season 1
5,400,000
18

Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen
4,500,000
19

The Brothers Sun – Season 1
4,100,000
20

KAOS – Season 1
3,400,000
21

Dead Boy Detectives – Season 1
3,100,000
22

Big Mistakes – Season 1
2,700,000
23

What to expect from The Boroughs Season 2

Season 1 tells a relatively complete story and covers an entire character arc for Sam Cooper, who begins the series as a lonely, grouchy new resident and ends it with newfound hope and new friends. By the finale, he is happy to remain in the Boroughs as a resident, no longer seeing it as a ‘gilded prison’.

“If Sam’s arc is about going from not accepting that death is part of life to embracing it, then he starts in a very sad place, missing Lilly,” co-showrunner Will Matthews told Netflix TUDUM. “We thought to help complete that arc — to heal that wound and create a little closure — [was] to give him this magical moment.”

However, the season ends on a massive cliffhanger curveball. With his friends over for dinner, Sam accidentally cuts himself and heads to the bathroom. Staring into the mirror, something strange occurs: his reflection glitches like TV static.

“[Sam] glitching in the mirror is a hint at where we hope to go [next],” co-creator Jeffrey Addiss teased to Netflix. “We wanted to have some fun.”

This wasn’t the first glitch we’ve seen; Sam hallucinates glitches of his wife earlier in the season. The show uses this effect as a byproduct of supernatural powers—much like how Stranger Things utilized flickering light bulbs. These glitches are born from the enigmatic “Mother” character.

“Mother puts out a signal, a sort of SOS, and that message gets picked up by people who are sensitive to it,” Addiss explained. “Mother is transmitting a signal, and that’s why we played with the idea of old TVs and this idea of transmission. There’s something happening, something going through the air.” Season 2 will undoubtedly explore the origins of Mother and the nature of this transmission.

The creators already have a ‘three-season plan’

The Boroughs. (L to R) Denis OÕHare as Wally, Alfre Woodard as Judy, Alfred Molina as Sam in The Boroughs. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2026

If one thing is for sure, creators Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews have a concrete roadmap for where they want the story to end.
“We have a very specific three-season plan, and we think we know the last shot of the last scene of the last episode,” Addiss told IGN. “How we get there might change a little, but we have the answers to all the questions, and a plan of how and when to answer those. We wanted season one to feel emotionally complete, but leave some questions unanswered. We really wanted [you] to feel like you got a full story, in case that’s all we get. If it’s a success, we’d like to tell you a bit more about what’s going on. What is Mother? We know the answer to that. We want to tell you, so hopefully people watch so we get that chance.”

Don’t expect the series to copy the exact Duffer formula of introducing a new villain each year, either. “We don’t think of it as a monster-of-the-season show,” Addiss revealed. “We do think of this as one large, complex story where crazy stuff continues to happen that’s surprising, but it is one story to us.”

What fans are saying: Demand for Season 2 is high

Audiences are absolutely loving The Boroughs, and ratings are predominantly positive. The series currently boasts a 94% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 7.6/10 on IMDb. While those scores are liable to fluctuate in the coming weeks, initial high marks are always a great indication of word-of-mouth popularity.

Across social media, viewers who binged the series on release day are already fiercely campaigning for a renewal. Many fans are playfully referring to the show as “Stranger Things for Gen X and Boomers,” praising its fun tone and unique take on the sci-fi genre. The overwhelming consensus online is that viewers need Season 2 “pronto,” and are eagerly waiting for Netflix to pull the trigger on a renewal.

The Boroughs Season 1 is now streaming globally on Netflix. Read our review here.