It's the end of an era for Netflix. On the morning of Sept. 29, the streaming giant shipped out its last DVD, marking the end of the rental program that helped the company get its start.
The company bid farewell to the program with a Sunset Boulevard billboard made up of Netflix's signature red envelopes that spelled out "DVDs will always be in our DNA" as well as a video showcasing everything that went into the rental service.
Set to the tune of Blink-182's "All the Small Things," the video showed clips of users ordering films and all the steps that occurred behind the scenes, from the creation of a DVD to the mail service making deliveries.
"Farewell to the era when Netflix came in the mail. Thanks for watching," text at the end of the video reads.
Netflix announced the change, which comes on the heels of the company's 25th anniversary last year, on April 18 on the company's official website.
"After an incredible 25 year run, we’ve decided to wind down DVD.com later this year," Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos wrote in the message. "Our goal has always been to provide the best service for our members but as the business continues to shrink that’s going to become increasingly difficult. So we want to go out on a high ..."
What was the last DVD?
The official X (formerly Twitter) account for Netflix's DVD service revealed on social media the contents of the last red envelope shipped.
Inside was a Blu-ray disc of "True Grit," a 2010 Western film.
The movie, directed by the Coen brothers and starring Jeff Bridges and a 13-year-old Hailee Steinfeld, was nominated for 10 awards at the 2011 Oscars, but won none.
Wait, Netflix still delivered DVDs?
Before Netflix became the streaming giant people recognize it as today, it shipped rental DVDs to customers, a practice that continued into 2023. Over the years, the service has had 40 million unique subscribers and has shipped more than 5 billion DVDs, according to the company.
Within a decade of the DVD shipping model’s launch, Netflix began introducing streaming media and videos on demand. The service later began creating its own original content, debuting its first TV series, the political drama “House of Cards,” in 2013.
“Orange Is the New Black,” “The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” and “Grace and Frankie,” its longest-running series, followed, as have plenty of critically acclaimed original Netflix movies, including “Marriage Story,” “The Irishman” and “All Quiet on the Western Front.”
In honor of its 25th anniversary last August, Netflix shared several fun facts about the DVD service, which transformed the entertainment industry:
- The first DVD that Netflix ever shipped? “Beetlejuice” on March 10, 1998. (Tim Burton’s frighteningly fun 1988 comedy starred Michael Keaton, Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Catherine O’Hara and a then-teenaged Winona Ryder, who would star decades later in the original Netflix series “Stranger Things.”)
- Though we all remember Netflix shipping its DVDs in red envelopes, the company’s earliest envelope was actually white.
- The most popular title requested through the Netflix DVD service is "The Blind Side," which is also making headlines this year after Michael Oher, who inspired the story, took legal action against the Tuohy family.
When does the DVD service end?
Netflix's DVD service concludes Sept. 29. Subscriptions to DVD.com will automatically be canceled on that date, and it will not affect subscriptions to Netflix's streaming service.
To celebrate the end of the road, Netflix will send some lucky subscribers 10 surprise DVDs in that last shipment.
Are there any fees for unreturned DVDs?
As Netflix winds down its DVD.com service, subscribers will not incur any charges for unreturned discs received from the final shipment, according to the company.
Users who want to return the DVDs can do so until Oct. 27, the last date that Netflix will accept them.
Why is Netflix ending their DVD service?
Netflix attributes the end of the service to a shrinking DVD business.
"Our goal has always been to provide the best service for our members, but as the DVD business continues to shrink, that’s going to become increasingly difficult. Making 2023 our final season allows us to maintain our quality of service through the last day and go out on a high note," the company said on its website.
How have people reacted?
Netflix also let customers on social media know that it would soon abandon the DVD format.
"To everyone who ever added a DVD to their queue or waited by the mailbox for a red envelope to arrive: Thank you!” the company wrote on its official Twitter account.
While some Twitter users responded with jokes showing their surprise that the DVDs were still a thing, many others lamented the company's decision to stop sending them.
"Damn… that’s wild. RIP my childhood," wrote one.
"Gutted," wrote another.
