Picture Credit: Sony Pictures Television
If you’ve been anxiously checking our lists to see if your favorite 90s sitcom was on the chopping block, you can breathe a massive sigh of relief. Seinfeld, the iconic show about nothing, isn’t going anywhere. Netflix has officially renewed its licensing deal with Sony Pictures Television to keep all 180 episodes of the sitcom for another five years.
As we’ve been covering extensively, a number of high-profile licensed shows were set to leave the platform this year. Seinfeld was right at the top of that list. As we originally reported back when the deal was struck, Netflix aggressively swooped in to secure the streaming rights to the series after losing heavy-hitters like Friends and The Office. This massive deal brought Seinfeld to the platform starting in 2021. That initial record-breaking pact—estimated at a whopping $500 million—was for five years, meaning it was due to expire on October 1st, 2026.
Earlier this year, we noted that Seinfeld would remain on Netflix until at least 2026, though its future beyond October was highly uncertain. Thankfully, a new deal was announced via the trades today. While the price tag for this new five-year SVOD deal is reportedly lower than the original half-billion-dollar agreement, Seinfeld remains a massive draw for the streamer.
Will Seinfeld remain on Netflix internationally?
There has been a bit of confusion in the trade reporting today, which suggests that Netflix will only keep the show in the United States and Canada.
However, we can confirm that won’t be the case.
While Netflix’s new deal makes them the exclusive SVOD home for the U.S. and Canada, a Sony Pictures representative clarified its international status, telling us: “[Netflix] will continue as the global SVOD home for Seinfeld, so it will remain on the service in all regions.”
So, whether you are streaming from the UK, Australia, or anywhere else Netflix operates globally, you won’t lose access to Monk’s Diner. The only difference is that moving forward, Sony now has the flexibility to potentially license the show on a non-exclusive basis to other international streaming platforms alongside Netflix.
What the Execs Are Saying
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos, who was highly instrumental in initially nabbing the rights to the show, was quoted today celebrating the extension: “The show famously about nothing is in fact, everything, and we’re proud to be the streaming home of Seinfeld, one of the greatest comedies in the history of TV.”
Sony TV Chairman Keith Le Goy echoed these sentiments, adding that the renewals demonstrate that “exceptional intellectual property stands the test of time.”
Why is Netflix so keen to hold onto a 37-year-old sitcom? The numbers speak for themselves.
According to Sony (citing Nielsen live data), nearly 60 million Americans—roughly 20% of the U.S. population—watched at least one minute of Seinfeld in the first half of 2026 alone.
When you dive into our own Netflix Engagement Report search tool, the scale of the show’s success becomes even more apparent. Globally, Seinfeld pulled in a staggering 1.816 billion viewing hours between 2023 and 2026, which translates to an equivalent of 236.6 million views.
Are you glad Seinfeld is sticking around on Netflix globally for another five years? Let us know in the comments down below!
