Social Media Influencers Are More Popular Than Movie Stars Among Gen Z

Plus, Americans believe $25 is "too much" to pay for their favorite streaming service each month, a new Deloitte report finds The post Social Media Influencers Are More Popular Than Movie Stars Among Gen Z appeared first on TheWrap.

Mar 26, 2025 - 17:23

Social Media Influencers Are More Popular Than Movie Stars Among Gen Z

There is a shift happening in entertainment, with a majority of Gen Z Americans saying YouTube and TikTok influencers are more popular than movie and TV stars, according to a new survey from Deloitte.

The 2025 Digital Media Trends report, released Tuesday, showed 52% of Gen Z-ers said they feel a “stronger personal connection” to social stars than to TV personalities or actors. And 56% said social content is “more relevant” to them than TV series or movies.

Gen Z — those who were born between 1997 and 2010 — was the only age cohort where a majority felt this way; Millennials, or those who were born between 1983 and 1996, were not too far off, though, with 45% saying they felt closer to social influencers, and 43% saying they preferred social content.

Unsurprisingly, the relative popularity of social influencers to TV and movie stars leads Gen Z-ers to spending a lot more time watching social content than shows or films.

“[Gen Z] respondents spend 54% more time — or about 50 minutes more — than the average consumer per day on social platforms and watching UGC; and 26% less time — or about 44 minutes less per day — than the average person watching TV and movies,” Deloitte’s report, lead by six of its analysts, said.

The report, based on a survey of 3,595 Americans in October, may not come as much of a surprise, considering the wild popularity of YouTubers, like MrBeast, who has 378 million subscribers. YouTube has also become the go-to hub for viewers to watch sports and political content, among an endless list of topics. And TikTok is also wildly popular among Americans, with a recent Pew survey finding the average TikTok users in the U.S. scrolls the app for 107 minutes per day.

Beyond the rise of social influencers, a few other entertainment-related findings stood out from Deloitte’s report. A majority of respondents said $25 per month was “too much” to spend on their favorite streaming service — which is interesting, considering Netflix’s premium tier now costs $24.99 per month. Most respondents said $14 was “just the right price” to pay each month for a service.

Overall, the average American is spending 13% more on streaming in 2025 — $69 per month compared to $61 a year ago, even though they are still using the same average number of services (4). Still, streaming is cheaper than the $125 per month the average cable and satellite customer is paying, Deloitte found.

You can find the full report by clicking here.

The post Social Media Influencers Are More Popular Than Movie Stars Among Gen Z appeared first on TheWrap.