Social media and streaming algorithms now work hand in hand to amplify a show’s reach, as buzzwords, hashtags, and trending clips spread across social media. Recommendation engines push these shows to the top of what to watch lists, autoplay carousels, and for you pages. The result is a self-reinforcing loop: the more people talk about a show online, the more the algorithm promotes it; the more it’s promoted, the more people watch, bringing in new viewers, and then talk about it again. Popularity becomes both the cause and the effect.

I feel like people’s tastes in movies nowadays are too alike. We’re constantly recommended the same films by social media and streaming service algorithms, so we all end up watching the same things. On the one hand, this is good because it creates a sense of community — we can talk about the same movies. But if we watched different ones, it might be harder to connect since our interests wouldn’t overlap.

I personally still develop my own taste by watching romantic sad movies, I love a good cry on a friday night haha.