It was a big week for HBO/HBO Max, which led overall fan engagement on Twitter for Variety’s Trending TV chart for the week of Jan. 10 – 16. Bolstering those online conversations were two key series, “Euphoria” and “Peacemaker,” as well as casting news for the upcoming adaptation of the video game “The Last of Us.”
The second episode of “Euphoria’s” sophomore season once again landed the show in the top slot with more than 440,000 engagements. Much of the discussion revolved around two new players in the Zendaya-starring drama, who arrived to stir up some trouble for two fan-favorite couples.
Dominic Fike’s Elliot has divided fans who are loyal to the Rue-Jules (Hunter Schafer) romance, while users seem conflicted about Chloe Cherry’s Faye — who may be there to cause strife between Fez (Angus Cloud) and Lexi (Maude Apatow). Debates raged on the social media platform, as the series continued to deliver a killer soundtrack to accompany its gritty teen storylines.
lexi and fez being nervous around each other, lexi being jealous of faye, fez being disappointed when lexi says she’s just there for a drink and doesn’t need any help #Euphoria pic.twitter.com/iSURCPAy6x
— kai (@missyouharry) January 17, 2022
Fancy seeing you here. #euphoria pic.twitter.com/YyFWhuiJon
— HBO (@HBO) January 15, 2022
Taking the second spot on this week’s list was “Peacemaker,” which dropped its first three episodes on Thursday. The series amassed a lot of buzz and anticipation on Twitter leading up to the premiere, in large part thanks to star John Cena and creator James Gunn driving engagement with trailers, photos and BTS content.
Been posting a lot about the premiere of #Peacemaker lately. Floored by the response to this amazingly crazy show and the amazing cast crew. Very grateful for the many of the kind words shared. Ready to share the rest of the season with everyone! @hbomax
— John Cena (@JohnCena) January 15, 2022
Fans were particularly excited by the DC Comics series’ dance-happy opening credits, which Gunn later shared due to popular request.
Due to incredibly popular request, here are the opening credits of #Peacemaker. Watch now on @hbomax & fine streaming services around the world. @dcpeacemaker@JohnCena @thedanieb @jennlholland @freddiestroma @steveagee @robertpatrickT2 @itsnhutle @LochlynMunro pic.twitter.com/O3SgFtxA3W
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) January 14, 2022
Star Danielle Brooks (“Orange Is the New Black”) also won over viewers with her portrayal of Leota Adebayo, while a top-secret appearance by Viola Davis further fueled the tweets. Davis reprised her “Suicide Squad” character, Amanda Waller, in the first episode to deliver a (no spoilers) twist involving Adebayo.
Thank you all for the overwhelming #Peacemaker love. Your support and viewership means the world! 🍻
— Danielle Brooks (@thedanieb) January 16, 2022
Seriously loved the Viola Davis cameo in #Peacemaker as Amanda Waller!! And that twist! 😳 #PeacemakerParty pic.twitter.com/RuC8AqPAQH
— JT|DCEU| (@JTsLeague) January 14, 2022
HBO/HBO Max also took the fifth slot on this week’s Trending TV chart with “The Last of Us” thanks to another casting announcement and a rumored premiere date. The TV series adaptation of the hit video game stars Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal, and now Storm Reid (“Euphoria”) has joined the cast as Riley Abel. Reid herself tweeted the news, along with the date 2022, leading fans to believe the series will air later this year (HBO has yet to confirm an official premiere).
I got some NEWS 🚨 Beyond excited to join the cast of #TheLastOfUs as Riley on @HBO. Let’s get to work. 🎬 2022 looking bright already 🕺🏽 pic.twitter.com/A1O9tg4Lna
— Storm Reid (@stormreid) January 14, 2022
Elsewhere on this week’s trending list, the social media iteration of the Golden Globes continued to draw buzz in the third slot, as those who failed to follow along on Jan. 9 caught up on Monday morning or debated some of the winners.
“Emily in Paris” rounded out the Top 5 in the fourth slot as Netflix renewed the rom-com for a third and fourth season. The second season, which debuted on Dec. 22, easily landed in Netflix’s own Top 10 list across 94 countries, with 107.6 million hours viewed from Dec. 22 - 26.
Emily in Paris has been renewed for Season 3 — and Season 4! 🍾 pic.twitter.com/3zqj36vmnO
— Netflix (@netflix) January 10, 2022
“The Book of Boba Fett,” which dropped its third episode on Wednesday with guest stars Stephen Root and Danny Trejo, fell just short of the Top 5 by roughly 2,000 user engagements.
Boba Fett learns his new Rancor Monster is depressed. He spends a few minutes smiling & mewing while he pets it like a puppy. Danny Trejo approves. pic.twitter.com/xDZl8Dtzvo
— Dataracer (@Dataracer117) January 12, 2022
Book of Boba Fett this week had Stephen Root talking about the fine details of the moisture farming business and Danny Trejo explaining the complexities of raising and caring for rancors.
idc what you all think, this is a perfect show.
— Max Rebo’s Roadie (@KevKoeser) January 13, 2022
The Temuera Morrison-starring series also caught fan interest with a Television Critics Association panel during Disney Plus’ portion of the virtual winter press tour. Both Morrison and co-star Ming-Na Wen were in attendance for Friday’s event.
#TheBookOfBobaFett: Temuera on finding his character: "I made a lot of it up when I was getting the makeup tests done... I wanted to bring a little bit more energy... those things that make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up" #TCA22 pic.twitter.com/AP2q1ENBmY
— Hanhonymous (@Hanhonymous) January 14, 2022
Rounding out this week’s Top 10 were “The Legend of Vox Machina” after Amazon Prime Video debuted an official trailer for the much-anticipated, animated show; The CW’s “Naomi,” a.k.a. the Ava DuVernay DC superhero drama that launched on Jan. 11; Netflix’s latest gory Korean series, “All of Us Are Dead,” which dropped its first trailer ahead of the Jan. 28 premiere; and the streaming service’s “Our Beloved Summer,” which is no stranger to Variety’s Top 10 trending list.
