Netflix rolls out minimalist subtitles: goodbye to “[creaking door]”!

What if Netflix stopped spoiling action scenes with [ominous music]? The platform is finally launching light subtitles, for those who just want to follow the dialogue... without the footsteps or dramatic sighs.

Did you know that more than half of Americans watch series with subtitles turned on? Between low-end TV speakers and mumbling actors, Netflix has decided to simplify the lives of text-to-text addicts. the screen. The platform is now introducing a dialogue-only subtitles option, which removes unnecessary audio cues.

This feature is gradually being rolled out, starting with season 5 of You and the Tom Hardy film Havoc. It should therefore be available for all new Netflix original productions in the future. To activate it, simply choose the language (English, German, etc.) in the subtitle settings, without checking the "CC" box (subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing). Purists can always keep the audio descriptions... but let's admit that [canned laughter] in Friends, it's fine for five minutes.

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A new "I just want to understand what they're saying" mode

Concretely, no more [phone vibrates] or [distant explosion]. Only the dialogues are displayed, for immersion without distractions. The idea: to respond to the demand of users who don't need to know that a character "sighs loudly" to follow the plot.

Netflix promises that all its new original productions will integrate this option, in all languages. For the existing catalog, a spokesperson indicates that a rollout is "under consideration." In the meantime, fans of K-dramas or Scandinavian thrillers will have to deal with the descriptions... and be patient. We hope that the company will quickly adopt this type of refined subtitles across its entire catalog.

This update adds to the recent freedom to choose audio language and subtitles separately. Enough to satisfy polyglots and those who prefer dubbing... but can't stand rough translations.

One unknown remains: how much time will we gain without these extraneous lines of text? Hopefully, enough to no longer miss a plot twist because of a misplaced [awkward silence].