Credit: Netflix / Daniel Delgado Jr

Unpredictability is what makes the US Netflix series chart so unique because some weeks, you’ll be watching it walking hand in hand with the global series chart, but this week’s not one of them.

East of Eden may be the worldwide number one, but America has put A Different World on top instead, and you better not take it for some tiny little nostalgia wobble either. Hillman still means something over in America, clearly, and the sequel made sure to prove viewers that it’s bringing novelty while keeping nostalgia in mind.

But East of Eden is breathing right down its neck, though, so it’s not like A Different World has pushed it too far. Zoe Kazan has adapted the very same Steinbeck novel her grandfather, Elia Kazan, turned into a film with James Dean in 1955. Seventy years later, the book has come back round to the same bloodline.

Then Wonka’s The Golden Ticket is a fresh entry to the list. Here, the would-be contestants were sent actual chocolate bars and had no clue whether they were in until they tore the wrapper open and found a Golden Ticket. Twelve people got through, each allowed to bring the one person they absolutely would not want to walk into Wonka’s factory without, which is quite close to the actual story. Very on-brand, we must say.

The Great British Baking Show is still holding its ground, with Nigella Lawson succeeding Prue Leith after nine seasons, and the transition feels almost seamless.

Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story has slipped, but hardly fallen off the chart, and this season has more on its mind than just asking whether Lizzie did it, because it follows the way her name kept turning up in American culture long after the trial was finished.

Lower down, Murder in a Small Town, the newest addition to Netflix’s catalogue, takes us to the world of Rossif Sutherland, a police chief who moves to coastal British Columbia hoping for a gentler life, which is adorable, given the title, while WWE Raw, as usual, secured a spot on the list.

And then hello, the kids crash the party.

Ms Rachel season three and Danny Go! season two both make the cut before LEGO ONE PIECE ends the list, so in the space of one Top 10 you have gone from Lizzie Borden to nursery-age singalongs to plastic pirates. That’s Netflix US for you!

The 10 most popular series on Netflix US this week

• A Different World: Season 1
• East of Eden: Limited Series
• Wonka’s The Golden Ticket: Season 1
• The Great British Baking Show: Collection 14
• Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story: Season 1
• Murder in a Small Town: Season 1
• Raw: 2026 – September 28, 2026
• Ms. Rachel: Season 3
• Danny Go!: Season 2
• LEGO ONE PIECE: Season 1