Netflix is adding all 180 episodes of Seinfeld to its library in just 30 days, and the streamer is having a hard time not gloating. A press release from Netflix promises to deliver “2021’s hottest new show,” anticipating some big numbers from fans binge-watching the classic sitcom. Seinfeld will be available on Netflix starting on Friday, Oct. 1, 2021.
This will be the first time every season of Seinfeld will be available to stream in one place all over the world, and it has even been updated to 4K resolution, according to a report by Deadline. The Netflix press team had some fun with the announcement, listing Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David as “rising stars,” and Netflix’ co-CEO Ted Sarandos even got in on with a statement saying: “I truly think he and Mr. David have enormous futures ahead of them and I’m thrilled Netflix could be the home for them to grow their fanbases.”
Even Seinfeld himself played along, jokingly thanking Netflix “for taking this chance on us,” and calling his beloved show a “crazy project.” He added: “I didn’t realize we made so many of them.”
Seinfeld premiered in July of 1989 on NBC, and ran until May of 1998 with 9 seasons in total. The show was created by Seinfeld and David, and starred Seinfeld as a fictionalized version of himself — a stand-up comedian living and working in New York City while trying to find balance in his personal life.
The other stars of the show were Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Elaine Benes, Jason Alexander as George Costanza and Michael Richards as Cosmo Kramer. All four live in New York’s Upper West Side in the show, and much of it takes place in their apartments, a nearby diner or other low-stakes situations. It was famously touted as “a show about nothing” in its time.
Seinfeld was considered a revolutionary sitcom in its time, breaking many conventions of the genre and presenting the audience with reasons to dislike its main characters. The show also resisted the predictable thread of a romance between the main characters — particularly Jerry and Elaine — and undercut emotional and sentimental moments at every turn. This is why shows like It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Workaholics were later compared to Seinfeld for better or worse.
Up until now, Seinfeld has been periodically available to stream on Hulu in the U.S., and on other services around the world. It is not clear why NBC did not call the show home to its Peacock streaming service. Regardless, Seinfeld hits Netflix on Friday, Oct. 1, 2021.