In September last year, while Meghan Markle was bopping to the tunes at Queen Bey’s ‘Renaissance’ concert, her breakthrough show was staging an epic renaissance on Netflix. Suits not only shattered streaming records but also became the first television show to notch up a remarkable 3 billion minutes of views for seven weeks straight. That translated to a whopping 26.5 billion minutes watched since its return to screens earlier this summer, despite being off the air for four years.

This surge in the show’s popularity also lifted the profiles of its cast members. Recently, one of the cast members, who also happens to be Markle’s pal, opened up about this unexpected renaissance of the Aaron Korsh show.

Meghan Markle starrer Suits’ renaissance made the lesser-known cast members popular 

Meghan Markle became a sensation following her stint in the legal drama Suits. However, not every actor in the show had the same story. In a recent chat on Reels The Talk, Abigail Spencer shared that people even had a hard time remembering her full name. She also shared her shock at how she became so “famous” after the show blew up on Netflix. Both Spencer and Meghan Markle cooked up a tight friendship that went beyond the series’s run. 

In fact, in 2018, Abigail Spencer landed a front-row ticket to Markle and Prince Harry‘s dreamy wedding. However, the true depth of their friendship remained hidden until Spencer made an appearance on the Sussexes’ contentious Netflix docuseries, Harry & Meghan. When Suits aired on the USA Network, the legal drama fell short of creating the generation-defining buzz of Friends or Game of Thrones. So, what was the actual reason behind this sudden surge in popularity in 2023?

As per Meghan Markle’s statement to Variety on the carpet at Mother Wolf, the sudden rise in viewership of the show can be attributed to its binge-worthy nature. However, the showrunner, Aaron Korsh, had a different opinion. 

What made Suits so popular in 2023? 

Suits was a reliable performer in the USA, but it was never a show that set the ratings on fire. The final season in 2019 had an average audience of about 2.1 million per episode, including delayed viewing, as reported by Nielsen. However, during the summer TV season lull, worsened by strikes in Hollywood that halted much of the production of scripted shows and films, audiences revisited old favorites from basic cable and streaming platforms to fulfill their entertainment cravings. This rekindled the flame for Suits as well.

When The Hollywood Reporter popped the question to Aaron Korsh about the unexpected popularity of Suits, he dished out a handful of reasons. Apparently, it was a cocktail of TikTok trends and Netflix’s strategic plan to reel in more viewers. He let slip that the “curiosity” around Markle might have pulled fans back to this wrapped-up show as well. Whatever the reason, the show has undeniably hit the big leagues on Netflix, standing tall next to heavyweights like Stranger Things and One Piece.

What do you think about the sudden boost in Suits’ popularity? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!