Prime Video Is Borrowing From Apple TV's Biggest Sci-Fi Hits With This Release Strategy Shift

In the old days, broadcast and cable networks released one episode of a show every week. It was a tried and true formula that kept viewers tuning in to find out what was going to happen next. But, with the rise of streaming, television is no longer locked into a weekly release strategy. The name of the game will always be to draw bigger audiences, and streamers have been experimenting with which release strategy is best for their programming. In the wake of competitors moving away from the all-at-once season drop, Prime Video's Fallout has adopted a new release strategy for Season 2.

Different Streamers Have Favored Different Release Strategies for New Shows

Every streamer has seemingly kept to the release strategy that they feel is most effective for earning eyes. Netflix has remained committed to complete season drops that are perfect for binge-watchers who don't mind digging into several episodes at a time — which has previously been effective for shows such as Bridgerton, Squid Game, and the Monster franchise, all of which have managed to draw a loyal following from one season to the next. While Netflix has also experimented with split-season premieres, as seen with The Crown, Wednesday, and the final season of Stranger Things, the streamer has never adopted an exclusive weekly release strategy.

Other streamers, however, have taken a different approach, resulting in a single season being released over several months. Apple TV, in particular, has had a lot of success in that regard; its once-a-week releases have resulted in some of the biggest sci-fi hits in recent memory. The massively-hyped Severance Season 2, as well as the recently concluded Pluribus Season 1, are an indicator that viewers are more than happy to keep tuning in every week to catch their favorite shows. Severance hit a whopping 650 days on Apple's domestic charts, while Pluribus also topped the streaming charts consistently during its first season. Apple TV's decision to favor a weekly release feels like a return to the days of appointment viewing television — and now, it seems that Prime Video has decided to borrow this successful release strategy for its biggest sci-fi property.

Prime Video Has Shifted to the Weekly Release Model for Several Shows

Fallout, a post-apocalyptic drama adapted from the popular video game franchise, depicts a time 200 years in the future after a nuclear war has taken place. A young woman named Lucy (Ella Purnell) decides to go on a mission to find her missing father (Kyle MacLachlan), but has never stepped foot outside her fallout shelter, which is known as a Vault. Her journey takes her across a wasteland, where she crosses paths with an enigmatic ghoul who had a former life as a Hollywood movie star (Walton Goggins). When the first season of Fallout was released all at once in April 2024, earning positive reviews and pulling in 65 million viewers in its first two weeks, it became the second most-watched show for the platform ever (after The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power). However, Prime Video has adopted a different strategy for Season 2, which premiered on December 16, 2025, and is now being released weekly.

Switching Fallout's release from a one-time drop to a weekly release is ideal for this fast-paced, yet incredibly detailed show. Because it's so action-packed, a binge would only make it feel like viewers are rushing through the story. A weekly release also allows for anticipation to build between each episode, especially on the heels of any big twists or cliffhangers. This structure has already been hugely useful to the storytelling just within the first few Season 2 episodes that have been released — the end of one recent episode sees Maximus (Aaron Moten) act rather drastically in a way that's only going to further complicate his role within the Brotherhood of Steel, but leaves viewers off in a place that only raises the anticipation for the next episode.

'Fallout' Releasing Weekly Is Only Going To Be Better for the Show

It's not just Fallout's storytelling that will be helped by a once-a-week drop. The weekly release schedule also makes it easier for Prime Video to build buzz about the show, maximizing online watercooler chats and social media fervor, which makes it easier for new viewers to both hear about the show and get caught up before another episode drops. The strategy seems to be working already — Fallout has been holding strong at the #1 spot on Prime Video's charts since its return for Season 2.

While there might still be some fans of the binge release, streamers are discovering that their strategies are best determined on a case-by-case basis. Some dramas with more complicated, in-depth plots can benefit from a one-time drop, while other, more fast-paced series would be better served by weekly releases. Each release strategy is a gamble, and sometimes it's not successful. Stranger Things' final season has been criticized because the narrative's weaker points were more obvious within a season that was split up into several parts. However, it's already clear that just a few episodes into Fallout Season 2, Prime Video is already reaping the rewards of shifting to the weekly release model.

Fallout is available to stream on Prime Video. New episodes drop every Wednesday.