Is there a movie or TV show that you’ve been meaning to watch? There’s probably plenty. Mr. Friedland states, “One that’s pretty high on my mental list is The Wire…and another one is WandaVision.”

If you are an avid movie and TV watcher, chances are you own a watchlist. You probably own a list of all the content you’re planning on watching sometime in the future. Even though these lists are supposed to be useful, the bigger they get the less likely you are going to watch any of them. 

There are so many things to consider: What show or movie should I watch first? Should I finish this movie before moving on to another one? How do I catch up on this show before the new season premieres?

Truth be told, there are too many movies and TV shows out there right now, and it’s impossible to watch them all. I mean I can barely get through the one show I’ve been trying to finish for almost two years. Why is it so hard to sit down and watch something new or finish something you’ve already started? 

I can understand my frustrations when it comes to my watchlists, but I wanted to see how other people feel about their own watchlists. Like the wannabe scientist that I am, I conducted a survey of 14 students and asked them about their watchlist information. I got some interesting results. 

Most of their watchlists existed on streaming services such as Netflix, Hulu, HBO MAX, and Disney Plus, which makes sense because those services in particular have the best recommendation algorithm. I also found that the average number of movies and tv shows on their list was about 22, however, the average percentage of movies and shows they watched was only about 28%. 

All this information shows is that most people simply cannot be bothered to watch anything new anytime soon. Some of the students surveyed had as high as 30 movies and TV shows on their list and touched practically 0% of them. Now, there could be many reasons why it’s so hard to watch them, despite how much we are meaning to.

Caitlin Sigler, a senior at UHS, explains, “I’m pretty busy and most of the shows I want to watch are long, so it’s hard finding time to commit myself to one show. “

It’s true that many of us simply don’t have the time to watch anything because we’re occupied with work, school, and other responsibilities. Although, it’s not necessarily easier if we had the extra time. 

Audrey Houghton (11) admits, “It’s just a lack of motivation. Like they’re right there and I have time to watch, but also I’m lazy.” It can take so much time and effort Like Caitlin said, the keyword in all of this is commitment. No matter how much we mean to watch something, we have to be willing to commit to sitting down and watching it for sometimes long periods. 

That being said, there’s time. Even if you don’t get to a certain movie right now or you aren’t able to finish a season of a show any time soon, you can always come back to it in a few weeks or months when you have the time or the motivation to do so. Think of the 30+ shows and movies sitting on your watchlist right now as a blessing. I mean, would you rather have too much to watch or nothing at all?