Apple TV’s Lowest-Rated Sci-Fi Series Is a Surprise Global Streaming Hit

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Trevante approaches someone hesitantly in protective gear in Invasion Season 3.

Chris is a Senior News Writer for Collider. He can be found in an IMAX screen, with his eyes watering and his ears bleeding for his own pleasure. He joined the news team in 2022 and accidentally fell upwards into a senior position despite his best efforts.

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For a show that’s spent most of its life being dunked on online, Invasion is having the last laugh. Apple TV’s sprawling alien-invasion drama — often labeled the streamer’s lowest-rated sci-fi series — has surged into the global top ten, marking an unexpected turnaround for a show many had already written off. It’s not a viral breakout, but it is a clear signal that more people are watching than ever before.

Created by Simon Kinberg, Invasion was never designed to be fast, flashy, or crowd-pleasing. From the start, it leaned into slow-burn storytelling, fractured perspectives, and long stretches of ambiguity — choices that frustrated plenty of viewers expecting something closer to Independence Day or War of the Worlds. The backlash was loud, persistent, and often brutal, and yet, the show kept going like all good shows do.

Across multiple seasons, Invasion gradually expanded its scope, brought its scattered characters closer together, and doubled down on mood, mystery, and emotional fallout rather than spectacle, and finally that patience appears to be paying off in the streaming era, where viewers are discovering — or revisiting — the series without weekly expectations or social-media noise shaping the experience.

How Good Is 'Invasion'?

Collider’s review of the show stated that Invasion Season 3 represents the series at its strongest, finally delivering on the long-term storytelling promise established in earlier seasons. After two seasons of fragmented perspectives and slow-burn buildup, the show brings its core characters into meaningful alignment, shifting from survival to proactive resistance against the alien threat. Strong performances — especially from Shamier Anderson, Golshifteh Farahani, and Shioli Kutsuna — anchor a season rich in mystery, emotional weight, and escalating stakes. While the early episodes move deliberately and the aliens remain mostly dormant at first, the payoff is substantial, resulting in a confident, cohesive, and thrilling sci-fi chapter:

"Many shows are pitched, sold, and advertised as based around a tight multi-year plan, but Invasion genuinely feels like it. Just as The Avengers are intended to tackle threats more powerful than any one member alone, the show capably develops increasingly dangerous problems — which is saying a lot given that it effectively starts with an alien apocalypse — and it’s evident that there’s life left in the story world after this iteration of the tale. With every factor coming together, Invasion has never been better in Season 3."

Invasion is available to stream on Apple TV.