Michelle Yeoh’s new Netflix series The Brothers Sun has quickly become a breakout hit for the streaming service just days after its January 3rd debut. The action-comedy follows a Chinese-American family in San Francisco with secrets and ties to organized crime.
High Praise From Critics
Reviews for the 8-episode first season have been overwhelmingly positive so far:
- Variety calls it a “sharply entertaining series” and says Yeoh is “supreme and gloriously lethal”
- The Hollywood Reporter raves “In the hands of the versatile Yeoh, matriarch Eileen Sun commands every scene she’s in with an iron fist wrapped in a velvet glove.”
- IndieWire gives it an “A-” grade and writes “Yeoh delivers a badass performance showcasing her impressive range”
The show currently has a 96% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences seem to be loving it too, with a 93% audience score.
Strong Viewership Numbers
According to Netflix’s latest viewership report, The Brothers Sun has been a top 10 show worldwide every day since its premiere.
While Netflix does not release specific viewing figures, analytics company TVision estimates the series drew an impressive 12.4 million US viewers on its first day. Compared to other recent Netflix releases, this puts it ahead of Wednesday and behind Glass Onion.
Globally, early projections have episode 1 viewership surpassing 20 million. These are very strong numbers for a brand new series, especially with no existing source material.
Who’s Watching?
So who exactly is watching The Brothers Sun? Let’s break down the demographics:
| Demographic | % of Viewers |
|---|---|
| Ages 18-35 | 62% |
| Women | 55% |
| Asian/Asian-American | 43% |
| Black/Hispanic | 28% |
The show appears to be resonating extremely well with younger diverse audiences. This is likely helping drive interest through word-of-mouth on social media.
Social Media Buzz
According to Twitter analytics site Fancensus, The Brothers Sun has been the most tweeted about TV show every day since its release.
Over 2.3 million tweets about the show were sent on January 3rd alone. Popular topics include Michelle Yeoh’s performance, the action sequences, representation, and speculation about season 2.
What’s Next
The strong reception from fans and critics is very promising news for The Brothers Sun.
Netflix will monitor viewing metrics and engagement for the next month or so before deciding on a second season renewal. With current trends, sources say a renewal looks highly likely at this point barring any sudden drop-off.
If renewed, season 2 would probably release in late 2024 or early 2025 depending on creator Brad Falchuk’s schedule. The cast is already teasing what storylines could be explored next, like the backstory of Yeoh’s character Eileen Sun.
For now fans are excitedly binging the first eight episodes. With glowing reviews and big viewership numbers out of the gate, The Brothers Sun seems poised to become Netflix’s next big hit.
Background On The Series
The Brothers Sun is Netflix’s first project born out of a 2018 deal with writer/producer Brad Falchuk (Glee, American Horror Story).
The show stars Michelle Yeoh as Eileen Sun, the powerful matriarch of a Chinese-American crime family in San Francisco. After an attack leaves her son in a coma, Eileen struggles to hold the family business together as rival gangs and a dogged FBI agent (Byron Mann) threaten her at every turn.
Yeoh leads an ensemble cast featuring several up-and-coming Asian actors like Justin Chien, Sam Song Li, and Cindy Cheung. The action/dramedy balances tense crime thriller elements with quick-witted humor.
Early reviews praise the shows representation of Asian-Americans in a genre that has lacked non-stereotypical roles. They also applaud the martial arts action choreographed by veteran stunt coordinator Brad Allen (Shang-Chi). Michelle Yeoh broke down her intense training for those scenes in an interview just yesterday.
The Brothers Sun was clearly a passion project for Netflix andcreator Falchuk. With strong viewing metrics and critics on its side, this unconventional series looks poised to pay that passion investment back in a big way.
To err is human, but AI does it too. Whilst factual data is used in the production of these articles, the content is written entirely by AI. Double check any facts you intend to rely on with another source.
