Chris Lange, FISM News
Shortly after a quarterly earnings report released by Netflix revealed its first major subscriber loss in over a decade, the streaming service teased a new fictional series about a pregnant man titled “He’s Expecting,” a move some see as indicative of its floundering business model.
The description reads, “When a successful ad executive who’s got it all figured out becomes pregnant, he’s forced to confront social inequities he’s never considered before.”
The series trailer asks the audience, “What are ‘roles’ anyway? Why put people in boxes like ‘ideal father’ and ‘ideal mother’?”
The Japanese “dramedy” stars Takumi Saitoh (Kentaro Hiyama) and Juri Ueno (Aki Seto), who plays Hiyama’s female partner. The trailer also includes a clip from a scene in which Hiyama considers an abortion.
Netflix hemorrhaged 200,000 subscribers in the first quarter of 2022, causing its shares to take a nosedive in after-hours trading, though it isn’t clear by how much. Reports on the stock loss vary from as low as 20% to 35% or higher.
Several media outlets have suggested the company’s troubles stem from being forced to compete with less-expensive streaming services and its decision to withdraw subscriptions in Russia to protest the war. Others, however, point to Netflix’s increasingly political agenda as the culprit, reflected in shows like “He’s Expecting” and 2020’s controversial film “Cuties.” Netflix was hit with an indictment in the state of Texas on child pornography-related charges connected to the show, which had a “Mature Audience” rating and featured young girls. The charges include showing the genitals of its prepubescent actresses.
Tesla CEO and SpaceX founder Elon Musk shared on Twitter that he believes Netflix’s liberal programming choices are at the root of the company’s Wall Street tumble, saying, “The woke mind virus is making Netflix unwatchable.”
The woke mind virus is making Netflix unwatchable
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 20, 2022
Another user agreed with the billionaire’s assessment, writing “@elonmusk is 100% correct; me and so many families we know are cancelling @netflix. Not only are they losing their content library but when the new content are shows like ‘He’s Pregnant’ – no thanks.”
Hey @netflix you think “he’s pregnant?” I think you’re canceled!” chimed in another user, whose tweet was accompanied by a screenshot of a Netflix subscription cancellation.
Another offered a piece of advice to Netflix, writing “Hey @netflix stop posting SJW and “he’s pregnant” type content and you could fix this just a tip,” referencing an attached article announcing the company’s stock plunge. “Every day people don’t want that garbage,” the user added.