Absentia is a three-season crime thriller about FBI agent Emily Byrne, played by Stana Katic. The series first debuted in 2017, but a Netflix release on November 14, 2025, gave it a new streaming window. ScreenRant reported that it reached No. 2 globally and No. 8 in the United States on Netflix’s chart on November 25; those are historical positions, not a current ranking.
What is Absentia about?
Emily Byrne is an FBI agent declared dead in absentia. After she returns, she must rebuild her family life and identity while facing suspicion in a string of murders. The premise puts her investigation alongside a personal struggle: she is trying to reclaim her place in a life that continued without her.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
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| 1 |
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Absentia | $27.77 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
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Absentia: Season Three | $30.43 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
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Absentia: Season 3 | $12.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 4 |
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Absentia | $55.41 | Buy on Amazon |
Stana Katic stars as Byrne. The series has three seasons and originally debuted in 2017, making its late-2025 arrival on Netflix a new distribution window for an older show rather than the launch of a new Netflix original. ScreenRant reported the Netflix arrival date as November 14, 2025.
How big was its Netflix streaming run?
In a report published November 25, 2025, ScreenRant placed Absentia at No. 2 globally and No. 8 in the United States on Netflix’s chart. The rankings describe the report’s snapshot, not where the series stands today, and the figures are secondary reporting rather than a directly cited Netflix chart page.
#1 Best Overall
- DVD
- AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color
- English (Subtitles For The Hearing Impaired)
- 1
- 100
ScreenRant reported on December 3, 2025, that the series had accumulated 33.1 million viewing hours by that date, including 4.5 million hours in the preceding week. These are figures attributed to that report; they do not establish why viewers watched the show or indicate its present-day audience.
Why do critics’ and audience scores look different?
The ratings vary by season, audience group and snapshot. Rotten Tomatoes’ series page, accessed in 2026, lists a 47% season-one Tomatometer and a 72% series Popcornmeter from 250+ ratings. It shows no overall Tomatometer review score for the series. The page therefore does not support treating one critics-versus-audience comparison as a definitive score for all three seasons.
Rank #2
- Absentia (Season 3)
- Absentia (Season 3)
ScreenRant’s November 25, 2025 report described season one as 47% with critics and 67% with audiences. That audience figure is a dated snapshot and differs from Rotten Tomatoes’ current series-wide Popcornmeter. The two audience scores have different scopes and dates, so they should not be combined or presented as interchangeable.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Is Absentia on Netflix, and is it worth watching?
Rotten Tomatoes lists all three seasons as streaming on Netflix. Catalogs can differ by country and change over time, so check Netflix in your territory before planning a watch.
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For viewers drawn to an FBI-centered crime story with a personal-identity thread, the premise may be a fit. The scores point to a mixed reception rather than an overwhelming consensus: season one’s critic rating is lower than the current series audience score, while the historical audience snapshot reported in 2025 was also higher than its critic score. Whether that gap matters depends on how much weight you give reviews versus the show’s setup and tone.
Sources: ScreenRant’s 2025 reporting on the Netflix chart run and viewing hours; Rotten Tomatoes’ Absentia page for ratings, synopsis and listed availability.
Quick Recap
Rank #4
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