Picture Credit: Netflix
Netflix has struck gold with its Turkish slate once again. Not a Stranger (known locally as Seni Tanıyorum) has quietly become a massive global word-of-mouth hit since touching down on the service in mid-September, breaking out of Turkey and appearing in the top 10s in almost every region around the world. Surging in its second week, the steamy psychological drama is dominating the charts worldwide. Here’s a breakdown of the show’s incredible performance so far, and will it be back for a season 2?
Created and written by Tuğba Doğan and directed by Mert Baykal, the 8-episode thriller was released on Netflix globally on Thursday, September 17th, 2026. The series stars Elçin Sangu (Kiralık Aşk), Melis Sezen (Sadakatsiz), and Ozan Dolunay (Zalim İstanbul), following a complex and steamy love triangle. The official logline reads: “Muse. Mother. Monster. Nazlı becomes every version of womanhood Funda paints, until her secrets threaten to fracture their relationship.”
A Massive Hit in the Top 10s
Word of mouth has been the driving force behind Not a Stranger, and the numbers reflect an incredibly rare trajectory for a regional Original.
According to Netflix’s official Top 10 data, the series debuted at #2 on the Non-English TV charts in its first week with a solid 4.6 million completed views (31.1 million hours viewed). But in week two, the show exploded. Viewership skyrocketed by a staggering 111%, pulling in 9.7 million completed views (65.7 million hours viewed) and easily claiming the #1 spot globally.
In total, the series has racked up 14.3 million views in just ten days.
According to data from FlixPatrol, the show hasn’t just been a hit in its home country of Turkey (where it naturally peaked at #1 and has held on tightly). The title has achieved global dominance. Over its first 14 days, Not a Stranger has hit the #1 spot in dozens of countries across Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Egypt, Morocco, and Saudi Arabia.
It has also managed to cross over heavily into English-speaking territories, peaking at #3 in the United States and Canada, and #4 in the United Kingdom and Australia.
Picture Credit: Netflix
As we covered in our top 10 report, the series’ rise in week 2 makes it comfortably the most-watched Turkish series released on a Thursday based on data dating back to 2022, but even expanding to other release days, the series is performing seriously well, even against Old Money, which was promptly renewed for season 2 and is considered one of the biggest titles for the region in quite some time.
Just to demonstrate its performance thus far, here’s a chart comparing all the Original Turkish series releases in the past few years, where they’ve managed to rank from their initial week of availability:
Will it be enough to get Netflix Turkey’s first-ever entry in Netflix’s all-time Non-English top 10 list? Not quite, as it currently lags behind La Palma and Teach You a Lesson, which occupy the number 8 and 10 spots, respectively.
Will there be a season 2 of Not a Stranger?
Looking at local reporting out of Turkey, there’s not much talk of a season 2 other than your usual SEO fare, with some barely even covering what happened by the end of season 1.
The final frames of the season show a harrowing imbalance: Nazlı (Melis Sezen) is inside the house acting as a mother to Mavi and a partner to İlker (Ozan Dolunay). Meanwhile, a recovering Funda (Elçin Sangu) is left outside, staring at the life that was stolen from her. She finally seems to realize that her “breakdown” wasn’t entirely her own doing, and her expression isn’t one of defeat—it’s pure anger.
As local reviewers have noted, Funda hasn’t yet uncovered the full extent of the sedation trail, İlker hasn’t faced a true reckoning for his past, and Kemal is still sitting on explosive secrets. Social media in Turkey has been flooded with fans demanding a second season, completely unwilling to accept that Nazlı might just “win”.
Given that Netflix typically waits 28 to 60 days to evaluate completion rates before making an announcement, we likely won’t get official confirmation until late October or November. However, considering the explosive word-of-mouth and the story’s open-ended nature, we expect Netflix to issue a Season 2 order very soon.
We will keep this post updated as soon as we hear official word from Netflix or Pelin Distas Yasaroglu’s production team.
Have you been watching Not a Stranger? Do you want to see a second season on Netflix? Let us know in the comments down below.
