The “skip intro” generation: Are we too restless for traditional TV?
Last updated: July 9, 2025
People are tired of sitting through opening credits. We've all become impatient with our TV watching, and it's actually changing how shows get made. We're hitting "Skip Intro," binge-watching entire seasons, and cranking up the playback speed because we can't sit still for normal pacing.
A button that changed everything
Netflix's "Skip Intro" button has basically become everyone's favorite feature. That's not just about convenience – it's a whole cultural shift. Almost every Netflix user binges multiple episodes and skips that intro every single time. People want to stay locked into the story without getting interrupted out by the same 45-second opening over and over again. Those opening themes we used to love? Now they just feel like annoying delays.
Speed, cliffhangers and ever‑shorter attention spans
It's not just intros people are skipping. More and more viewers are speeding up playback to squeeze in more content faster. YouTube and Prime Video let you watch at 1.25x or 1.5x speed, and that habit is spreading to regular TV watching too. Our attention spans have shrunk over the last twenty years. Probably because we're constantly hit with digital distractions. So now writers and producers are adapting with faster storytelling. They know they've got maybe a few minutes to hook you or you're clicking away.
Introduction or Interruption?
Opening credits used to be this whole art form. Think about Friends, The X-Files, or The Sopranos– you'd hear those first few notes and instantly know what you were in for. But now most people see intros as totally pointless leftovers. When episodes auto-play one after another, hearing the same theme song five times in a row gets annoying fast. Some people think we're losing something important by skipping what's basically the show's signature.
What it means for storytelling
This whole shift is completely changing how shows get made. That old-school episodic stuff where each episode stood on its own? Gone. Now everything's built for binging. Series are structured more like long novels than weekly chapters. Cold opens that throw you straight into action before any credits are everywhere now. Theme music often gets chopped down to just a quick logo flash or ditched entirely after the pilot. Writers are under serious pressure to make that first scene count. Even that slow-burn approach that used to define prestige TV is getting cut in favor of hooking viewers right away.
The future of TV is Restless
The rise of the “Skip Intro” generation is about more than buttons or time-saving – it’s about expectations. Today’s viewers want stories that start quickly, move fast, and respect their time. This demand is pushing television into a new rhythm, where attention is the most valuable currency and every second counts. One thing is clear: TV is no longer just made to be watched – it’s made to be binged, skipped, sped up, and consumed on our own terms.
