Diving Into Carnival Row
Photo: Amazon Prime Video
A lot has happened at Amazon Prime Video since the first season of Carnival Row was released back in 2019. Amazon’s spending on content has increased year over year by an average of $3 billion. As much as 4% of 2022’s nearly $17 billion was spent just on The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, which, along with The Legend of Vox Machina and The Wheel of Time, represents Amazon’s serious investment in the fantasy genre. With these shows competing against the likes of HBO’s House of the Dragon and Netflix’s The Witcher: Blood Origin, Prime Video must be asking itself: where does Carnival Row fit?
The studio behind Carnival Row was happy enough with the fantasy/neo-noir to renew it for a second season, but COVID-related production delays put a serious gap between that renewal and the premiere date of Season 2. With streamers slashing budgets, and a wealth of high-budget fantasy options to choose from, is Carnival Row a series Amazon should be using to pull in new subscribers, or should it save its marketing budget for successful action shows like Jack Ryan and The Terminal List? We’re taking a look at what viewers love about Carnival Row, what other shows they enjoy, and what those findings say about the show’s viability to Amazon as a subscription-driving asset.
Season 2 of Carnival Row premieres February 17 on Amazon Prime Video.
Photo: Amazon Prime
What Do Fans Love About Carnival Row?
One thing that’s immediately apparent from looking at Carnival Row’s rankings is that it’s not some afterthought among either fantasy fans or Amazon subscribers: it’s a cult favorite. The series, which stars Orlando Bloom and Cara Delevingne, has an impressive #2 ranking near the very top of The Best New Fantasy TV Series Of The Last Few Years (45K votes), sitting three spots above House of the Dragon and six above Rings of Power. The only series beating it on the list is Netflix’s The Witcher. Similarly, it’s #3 on The Best Fantasy Series On TV Right Now (39K votes), four spots ahead of Rings of Power; and #24 on the more general The Best Fantasy TV Shows (131K votes), 39 spots above RoP.
And the show isn’t just beloved by fantasy fans. It’s in the Top 10 of The Best Original Streaming Shows Of The Last Few Years (192K votes), a list topped by Amazon’s The Boys and featuring hits like Squid Game, WandaVision, and Only Murders in the Building. It’s also #4 on The Best Amazon Original Series (11K votes), with just The Boys, Jack Ryan, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel ahead of it.
The conclusion we can draw is that although Carnival Row isn’t necessarily talked about today in the same way as other fantasy series, it is beloved by viewers and a worthy asset for Amazon. The fact it hasn’t premiered new episodes in over three years makes its high rankings even more impressive.
#2 - The Best New Fantasy TV Series Of The Last Few Years (45K votes)
#3 - The Best Fantasy Series On TV Right Now (39K votes)
#4 - The Best Amazon Original Series (11K votes)
#10 - The Best Original Streaming Shows Of The Last Few Years (192K votes)
#21 - The Best Fantasy Drama Series (9K votes)
#24 - The Best Fantasy TV Shows (131K votes)
Who’s Watching Carnival Row?
Amazon clearly has plenty of good reasons to market the show and use it to pull viewers away from other streamers. The question is, which audiences should Amazon target?
NETFLIX
On multiple Ranker lists, the only fantasy shows that outrank Carnival Row are Netflix series like The Witcher. But with Henry Cavill leaving the show after its upcoming third season (a decision rumored to have been borne out of frustration with the direction of the writing), and with prequel series Blood Origin not garnering quite as much excitement, Amazon has an opportunity to pull fantasy fans away from Netflix. Amazon shouldn’t just target fans of The Witcher, though — it should be serving ads for Carnival Row to those who love Shadow and Bone, because those who love one show are 6X more likely to love the other. Action-packed Warrior Nun has fans who are 4X more likely to enjoy Carnival Row, while bodice-ripper Bridgerton’s viewers are 2X more likely to be fans of Amazon’s popular fantasy series.
These viewers love Carnival Row and… Shadow and Bone, Warrior Nun, Bridgerton
PARAMOUNT+
If any streamer has a library that can compete with Amazon’s stockpile of action thrillers, it’s Paramount+. The young streamer’s originals include mob drama Tulsa King, military action hit SEAL Team, and the TV version of video game sensation Halo. But when it comes to the fantasy genre, there’s relatively little for Paramount+ subscribers to choose from. That’s why Amazon should target fans of Paramount’s Star Trek: Picard and Evil, who are 3X more likely to enjoy Carnival Row, as well as those of Yellowstone, who are 2X more likely to love the show.
These viewers love Carnival Row and… Star Trek: Picard, Evil, Yellowstone
HULU
Hulu is another major player in the streaming wars without much of a presence in fantasy. The streamer’s originals are largely made up of dramas like Tell Me Lies and comedies such as PEN15 and Only Murders in the Building. And while Hulu’s partnership with broadcast networks like ABC and cable outfits such as FX offer plenty to subscribers, those ties don’t do much to cover Hulu’s fantasy gap. That’s partly why Amazon should target fans of one of Hulu’s more fantasy-adjacent series, The Handmaid’s Tale. Plus, fans of The Handmaid’s Tale are 3X more likely to enjoy Carnival Row, according to Ranker Insights. Other fan bases worth targeting with Carnival Row-centered marketing include those of The Orville: New Horizons and horror series Castle Rock, which are 3X and 2X, respectively, more likely to love Amazon’s steampunk fantasy series.
These viewers love Carnival Row and… The Handmaid’s Tale, The Orville: New Horizons, and Castle Rock
