Harlan, in black suit and sunglasses, next to Belle in olive jacket and sunglasses in The Waterfront
Image via Netflix
Netflix’s latest attempt comes with Scream director Kevin Williamson’s The Waterfront. Similar to Yellowstone, the coastal-set series follows the most prominent family in Havenport, North Carolina, the Buckleys, led by patriarch Harlan alongside matriarch Mae. Although The Waterfront failed to replicate Yellowstone’s critical acclaim, it received decent reviews and has instantly topped the Netflix charts, according to Tudum.

The Waterfront cast stands on a waterfront.
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The Waterfront Season 1 debuted on Netflix on June 19 and reached the top of the charts in four days, beating Ginny & Georgia Season 3 for the number one spot. During its debut week (June 16 to June 22), the series received 8.3 million views, with 53.3 million hours viewed. It entered the Top 10 in 77 countries and became the number one series in 10, including the U.S., despite lukewarm reviews.

The series has critics and audiences in agreement with a score of 70% from both camps on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics agreed that the series “traffics in clichés but injects them with enough bravado to make for a gripping binge.” While the score is nothing to brag about, it’s still enough to maintain a “fresh” badge with a respectable rating. However, it’s not enough to receive a Certified Fresh rating, as that requires 75%.

The Waterfront cast stands on a waterfront.
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CBR’s Brittany Frederick notes the resemblance as well as the similarities between creator Kevin Williamson’s previous shows, Dawson’s Creek and The Following, noting, “The Waterfront is what happens when elements of those two shows come together, featuring a powerhouse performance by Holt McCallany and great work from the rest of the ensemble that will make viewers look at all the actors differently.”

The Waterfront Is Inspired By A True Story
Kevin Williamson’s credits include shows like Dawson’s Creek, The Vampire Diaries, and the Scream franchise. Speaking about the new crime series, the creator revealed that it means a return to his roots and draws inspiration from his own childhood story.

Belle, played by Maria Bello, leans in a hospital doorway wearing a striped shirt in The Waterfront
Image via Netflix
Williamson opened upi about the series to Tudum, saying, “I come from a long line of fishermen. The fishing industry sort of upturned in the ’80s — it all started to go away, and my dad couldn’t feed his family. So someone came along and said, ‘Hey, if you do this one thing, you can make all this money.’ And it was hard to say no to.”

The creator explained that, for a while, his father became a runner and started transporting drugs on his trolley. “My dad – a very, very good man – got tempted to do some things that weren’t so legal and got in some trouble. [But] it put food on the table, helped me go to college.”