Some folks have been able to add Netflix shows and movies to their Watchlist in Apple’s TV app, but the long-overdue integration has been since pulled.
UPDATE: Netflix has confirmed to The Verge that the TV app integration was a mistake. It was clearly not intended to occur, but we now know that the actual support is being worked on and could eventually come in the future. The original article continues below,
FlatpanelsHD reports that some Netflix subscribers have a prompt in the TV app to connect their Netflix account. The integration appears to be rolling out as we speak because only a small subset of Apple TV owners with US Apple accounts seem to have it, but it should be available globally soon.
Another sign that this is a staggered rollout: At the time of writing, the integration was limited to the TV app for Apple TV, with no reports indicating that Netflix can be connected to the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Android versions of the TV app or versions for smart TVs, gaming consoles and media players like Roku or Amazon Fire TV.
You can now add Netflix Originals to Apple’s TV app
The entire Netflix catalog of shows and movies is not available at this point. Instead, only Netflix Originals like “Stranger Things” and “Squid Game” can be added to the Watchlist in the TV app, not licensed shows and movies.
After accepting the prompt by choosing the Connect option, you can add Netflix Originals to the Watchlist section (previously Up Next) and find them in Search. Selecting a Netflix Original in your Watchlist opens the video in the Netflix app for playback. Also, Netflix videos you haven’t finished watching appear in the Continue Watching queue within the TV app so you can pick u right where you left off.
Some users are seeing Netflix integration in the Apple TV app — after an 8 year hold out. But @Lucas_Shaw and I hear this is probably some sort of bug and there doesn’t appear to be a deal in place. It would be odd for Netflix to finally give in here.
— Mark Gurman (@markgurman) February 14, 2025
This is precisely how these integrations work for other compatible streaming services. What’s newsworthy is that Netflix has been the biggest holdout in supporting this functionality in the TV app. Netflix co-founder and former CEO Reed Hastings said earlier that “we prefer to have our customers watch our content in our service” where the company has complete control over the user experience and ads appearing on videos for ad-supported subscribers.
You can see the connected video streaming apps on your Apple TV in Settings > Apps > TV under the Connect to TV heading. On iPhone, iPad and Mac, simply hit your profile picture in the TV app and choose the Connected Apps option. There’s no dedicated interface to add video streaming apps to the TV app. Instead, the TV app will automatically prompt you to connect compatible video streaming apps after you install them.
These integrations enable the TV app to recommend new content or the next episode of shows you watch from connected apps. Apple’s support page lists compatible streaming apps that can be connected to the TV app, like Hulu, Prime Video, Disney+ and others, but Netflix isn’t listed yet because the page hasn’t been updated since March 2024.
Neither Apple nor Netflix commented publicly on the integration at publication time, but we’ll make sure to keep you in the loop. Apple recently launched a native TV app on Android, so owners of Android handsets and tablets can now watch Apple TV+ and MLS matches without using the web interface.