Netflix on Thursday announced that original language subtitles that show only the spoken dialogue. Yes, you read that right. The move is aimed at viewers that don’t actually require captions, but watch the movies and TV episodes with the subtitles turned on.
Until now, if you wanted subtitles in the original language, you’d turn on Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (SDH/CC), which includes not only dialogue but also audio cues like [phone buzzing] or [dramatic music swells], as well as speaker names.
This new subtitle option will first appear on new titles coming to Netflix, starting today with YOU Season 5.
Netflix says that nearly half of all viewing hours on the U.S. version of the streaming service happens with subtitles or captions turned on, which is why it is unveiling the new captions setting.
The new option will show subtitles for dialogue, but will not include audio cues like [phone buzzing] or [door slams] or [dramatic music swells], as well as speaker names. My personal favorite are the music cues like [jazzy tune playing] when the funeral march is playing.
The option will be available on new titles that are coming to Netflix, starting with the final season of YOU that launched today.
To enable dialogue-only subtitles, open the language picker and you’ll now see two subtitle options in English: English, which shows only the spoken dialogue, and English (CC), which includes both dialogue and audio cues like [door slams]. The subtitle option will also be available on all new Netflix originals in every language the streamer offers in addition to SDH/CC going forward.
