Retro sci-fi series Stranger Things has broken Netflix viewing records with the global launch of its third season, the streaming giant said in a rare tweet publishing viewing data.

The nostalgic 1980s period show about a gang of suburban adolescents battling supernatural monsters had been watched by 40.7 million accounts since 4th July, it said.

That figure for season three was “more than any other film or series in its first four days,” the company said.

“And 18.2 million have already finished the entire season,” it added.

Netflix is under increasing pressure from a cluster of deep-pocketed rivals including Amazon, Disney and Apple. Comcast’s NBC Universal and WarnerMedia’s HBO Max are also set to launch, depriving Netflix of popular shows The Office and Friends respectively.