Streaming giant Netflix has reportedly lost nearly $25 billion in market value following a public boycott campaign led by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk.
The company’s valuation fell from $514 billion on Sept. 27 to $489 billion by Oct. 3, marking its steepest weekly decline since April, according to data from Yahoo Finance.
Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, urged his 227 million followers on social media platform X to cancel their Netflix subscriptions, accusing the company of promoting transgender messaging in children’s programming.
“Cancel Netflix for the health of your kids,” Musk posted on Oct. 1, triggering widespread reactions and reportedly leading to the liquidation of over $15 billion in Netflix shares within 24 hours.
The controversy centers around the now-cancelled animated series Dead End: Paranormal Park, which featured LGBTQ+ characters. Conservative critics accused the show of pushing progressive ideologies, while Musk reposted messages labeling Netflix’s content as “LGBT propaganda.”
Despite gains in the broader tech market, Netflix shares dropped 4.4% over five trading days, underperforming peers such as Amazon and Meta. On Oct. 2, the stock opened 1.2% lower and closed down 0.8%, trading at $1,161.
Analysts say the timing of Musk’s boycott call and the stock’s decline is “hard to ignore,” though some remain optimistic about Netflix’s long-term performance ahead of its Q3 earnings report later this month.
Netflix has yet to issue an official response to Musk’s comments
