This iconic TV show is leaving Netflix in just 16 days

So watch it now before it's gone

Netflix
(Image credit: Shutterstock)

Bad news for fans of classic TV shows comes courtesy of confirmation that Netflix is losing legendary teen drama Dawson's Creek on April 30th, 2022.

That means that, right now, Netflix subscribers have just 16 days to catch the show before it gets pulled.

Right now Netflix has all six seasons of Dawson's Creek available to stream, but on April 30th the show will disappear from its content library in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and South Africa.

As to the reason why Dawson's Creek is leaving Netflix, that comes down to the limited-time streaming license paid by Netflix to the show's owner, Sony, expiring.

This trend of classic TV shows being pulled from streaming services is accelerating right now due to the streaming service war clicking into a new, higher gear. There's more streaming services than ever and, as content is king, volatility in terms of where shows are made available has increased.

Right now it is believed that Dawson's Creek will remain streaming on HBO Max and Hulu in the United States for the moment, but in the UK and beyond it is unknown where the show will land next, pressing the need to catch it now on Netflix.

Dawson's Creek Netflix TV show

Confirmation of the show's departure can be clearly seen right now on the Dawson's Creek show page, with "Last day to watch on Netflix: 30 April" clearly listed.

(Image credit: Netflix)

Why you should watch Dawson's Creek

If you watched Dawson's Creek when it originally aired in the late '90s and early 2000s, then you'll already know about its charms and wonderfully brazen flaws.

The show is essentially a coming of age narrative for a group of high school teenagers who reside in the fictional town of Capeside, Massachusetts. Each episode is loaded with buckets of teen-style angst, drama, and relationship dilemmas, though, with unrequited love and love triangles being very common.

Dawson's Creek also made naval-gazing into an art form, with each character frequently indulging in gratuitous contemplation of their own lives, decisions and relationships. What's so amazing about the show, though, is that on the whole despite all this naval gazing you still end up liking the core cast of characters. They come across as flawed and, in many aspects, real people making real mistakes.

The characters of Dawson's Creek have so many dreams and ideals that it's hard not to be enthused by their passion, or feel their misery when life does not work out as they hoped it would.

Politics, religion, sexuality, mental health and much more is explored in the show, too, and when you wrap this all up together you get a show that while obviously flawed - and especially by today's standards - often combines in the most surprisingly addictive way possible. It's so easy to watch and in each episode there is always some sort of soap opera drama to pull the attention.

Not every episode is a banger, and there's a series of episodes in season three centred around a new character called Eve that have to rank among the most derailed of any TV show ever, but as you know exactly what you're going to get from each episode, it's easy to have on in the background and dip into and out of.

And, well, Dawson's Creek's theme tune is, without doubt, one of the top 5 best TV show theme tunes ever. It's just so good. No matter how many times you watch an episode, which all start with a cold open, and then watch as the show transitions into its theme and opening titles sequence, the tune never gets old.

Simply put, even now in April 2022 Dawson's Creek remains escapist, borderline trashy TV catnip. Which is why anyone who is interested should catch it right now before it leaves Netflix in a matter of days.

Robert Jones

Rob has been writing about computing, gaming, mobile, home entertainment technology, toys (specifically Lego and board games), smart home and more for over 15 years. As the editor of PC Gamer, and former Deputy Editor for T3.com, you can find Rob's work in magazines, bookazines and online, as well as on podcasts and videos, too. Outside of his work Rob is passionate about motorbikes, skiing/snowboarding and team sports, with football and cricket his two favourites.