Netflix’s obsession with original content has resulted in the streaming giant releasing an absolute avalanche of new programming each and every single month. In light of that, it’s almost inevitable some of Netflix’s programming choices will leave some subscribers disappointed and angry.
Last September, for example, you might recall that Netflix was widely criticized for releasing a French film titled Cuties that some people felt overly sexualized children. More recently, some subscribers are lashing out at the streaming giant over a new show called Hype House.
For those unfamiliar, Hype House is basically a collective of TikTok influencers who live together and Netflix recently inked a deal with them for an unscripted series about life in the house.
The show synopsis reads: “From humble beginnings to overnight fame, these are the stories of the most popular personalities on social media as they come into their own, fall in love and tackle the next stage of their lives.”
Kouvr Annon, Nikita Dragun, Sienna Mae Gomez, Chase Hudson, Larri Merritt, Thomas Petrou, Alex Warren, and Jack Wright — a.k.a Hype House — will star in a new unscripted series that will reveal a side of themselves (and their relationships) that we rarely see! pic.twitter.com/NlRF5j0ZoF
— Netflix (@netflix) April 22, 2021
It seems innocent enough, which of course begs the question: why are some Netflix subscribers angry about the show?
Well, part of the reason is that some Hype House members have had their fair share of controversy in the past. Tony Lopez, for example, was accused of sexual assault and soliciting photos from a minor earlier this year. Notably, Lopez won’t be on the show, but some Netflix subscribers are still upset because members of the Hype House famously didn’t take COVID seriously and continued to party and film content even as the number of coronavirus cases across the country was surging.
Compounding matters were allegations that members of the Hype House who tested positive for COVID-19 didn’t disclose their positive diagnosis to others.
Note the following from an Insider report this past July:
One week later, on July 21, an estimated 67 influencers crowded into the Hype House, a TikTok collective of the app’s A-listers. Guests included YouTubers Nikita Dragun, James Charles, Emma Chamberlain, and Tana Mongeau, along with TikTokers Charli and Dixie D’Amelio. The occasion was a birthday party for TikToker Larri Merritt (known online as Larray).
According to Elijah Daniel, an LA-based creator, “a lot of influencers have been confirmed to me testing positive for COVID-19 after the influencer parties, like a LOT.” Daniel tweeted about the influencer “outbeak” on July 28, adding “And they aren’t saying anything & aren’t warning people they came in contact with after.”
In light of the above, some subscribers were so incensed that they threatened to cancel their subscriptions.
i've had enough pic.twitter.com/VY3oIJqtaj
— soph🧃 (@fullmoonyelena) April 22, 2021
Another Twitter, meanwhile, said she plans to boycott Netflix because it keeps investing money to make “useless humans famous.”
And while we can’t imagine that a significant number of Netflix subscribers will cancel their accounts, there’s no denying that the backlash from the show’s announcement has been pronounced:
netflix are making a show for the tiktok hype house it’s time cancel my subscription
— riri 🇵🇸 (@03riaaaa) April 22, 2021
you cancel so many good shows after just 1 season and instead give us a reality show trash like this? Literally nobody asked for this.
— Ron Swanson (@thegoddamnJets_) April 23, 2021
Meanwhile, an online petition to cancel Hype House has only elicited about 1,400 signatures online thus far.
