Netflix House Philadelphia Is a Pretty Photo Op for the ‘Gram

The future of streaming is a former Lord & Taylor in a shopping mall in King of Prussia, Pa. Or that’s what Netflix hopes.

Netflix House Philadelphia opens to the general public today — Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025 — The Hollywood Reporter can give you a snapshot of what it’s like on the inside. Focus here on the word “snapshot,” because it doubles for probably the main thing you’ll take away from Netflix House. That’s not necessarily a slight — much of what the Netflix House target demo does anyway is for the ‘gram. OK, now it does sound like an insult. But it’s fine, so long as you know what you’re getting into.

The good news for the chronically online is that much of what they’d want to take a selfie with, around or in at Netflix House Philadelphia can be accessed for free. There’s a 15-foot-tall “Thing” (the disembodied hand from The Addams Family) to welcome Wednesday fans, some Squid Game baddies in mannequin form and very dramatic Netflix-red stairs that lead directly to Bridgerton photo ops — the ceiling above is adorned with a Queen’s Gambit chess board, drawing the eye from the base to the landing. Netflix House Philadelphia is aesthetically pleasing, bursting with color and design. It does not lack for style, but the substance is debatable.

Netflix House PHL premieres with two “feature experiences,” one from Wednesday, its most-popular English-language series of all time, and another from One Piece, which is not, but has a similarly rabid fanbase.

The One Piece experience is an escape room, friendly for all ages, though you might end up working the clues with more than just your friends. Groups of six to 12 people can play — if you register with fewer than six, expect to be paired up with others. THR was hustled through the gameplay during our official tour and again opted for an abbreviated version on our own time, but the general sense is that the ongoing puzzle will be more pleasing than challenging. It was within those “locked” rooms that I first got a sense of just how modular Netflix House attractions are — there are no finished ceilings within the nonpermanent experience spaces. That may be a petty nitpick, but for me, it removed some of the element of being playfully “trapped.” The construction of these spaces are impressive, but by definition, unfinished.

One Piece: Quest for the Devil Fruit ends with a cool photo op, printed (on good stock photo paper!) and included in the price of admission.

Wednesday’s “Eve of the Outcasts” is going to be the more popular option — or at least the more populated. Essentially, it is a “cursed” carnival, which in part means that its “misery-go-round” is nonfunctional. More interactive are its piranha races (in place of the classic horse-racing boardwalk game) and Wheel of Doom, which tells you how you die. I ate it in a sword duel, which feels about right.

The relatively large floor plan (all told, Netflix House Philadelphia boasts more than 100,000 square feet) also re-creates a number of Nevermore Academy settings, like Wednesday’s and Enid’s (and Thing’s — cool effect there) shared dorm room, as well as Principal Weems’ office and the school’s biology lab. Visitors will be able to text message with Thing, who will help “uncover secrets hidden throughout the experience.” Who’s got one thumb and likes to be helpful? That … guy?

After a brief intro video, guests will be handed a bag of 15 tokens to be used across the space’s playable games (decapitate the teddy bear was kind of fun) as they see fit. Save a claw machine in Enid’s Fun Zone, winners don’t “win” anything, so have fun explaining that to any child who has ever spent 30 of your dollars to win a $3 boardwalk stuffy.

Another rub with “Eve of the Outcasts” is that the space could get crowded if it reaches its total capacity of 192. (The attraction will admit up to 24 new guests every eight minutes, THR is told.) Oh, and you are expected to return the Wednesday-branded token bag upon exit. Head upstairs to Netflix Shop for a souvenir! The “Eve of the Outcasts” currency won’t do you any good there.

The Wednesday experience takes place in a dark, hazy room, which may not make for a positive experience among the anxious and/or claustrophobic. (Here, the unfinished ceilings perhaps help a bit.) With the setting in mind, “Wednesday: Eve of the Outcasts” may not be for little kids. Preteens and teens will probably enjoy the spooky atmosphere, though pics may not come out “Instagram-worthy.”

The feature experiences start at $39. Ticket prices will vary depending on date, time and the activity or experience.

Situated between the two feature experiences is the TUDUM theater, an unintentionally ironic full-on movie house where Netflix fans can watch WWE Raw episodes, singalong with KPop Demon Hunters and, soon, screen new original movie In Your Dreams.

One level above, guests will find a unique nine-hole mini-golf course (it’s cool!) and VR rooms, as well as the retail section. The VR (“Play as the main character inside the worlds of Netflix shows and movies with immersive VR games powered by Sandbox VR, including:Stranger Things, Squid GameandRebel Moon”) starts at $25; Netflix Top 9 putt-putt starts at $15. The merch at Netflix Shop seemed to be high quality, and much of it will be exclusive to the brick and mortar spot.

Through the gift shop is Netflix Bites, a casual-dining restaurant with an open kitchen design and a bar in the middle. One of the pitches of Netflix Bites is that “you can always find a seat … and enjoy elevated comfort food served with a Netflix twist,” as the company’s vice president of experiences Greg Lombardo told press. The food was pretty good for what it was, but we’re not so sure about that seating claim should the House become a hit. See the Netflix Bites arrangement below:

That encompasses the big question here, of course: Can Netflix replicate its incredible media success in experiences? Netflix House is not set up to reach that bar — Disney World it is not, and executives know this — but on its much, much smaller scale, can Netflix House, well, scale? (Thus far, Netflix has announced future Houses coming in Dallas and Las Vegas.)

It had better. The investment here is no ad-supported-tier rate. The giant red envelope visitors will pass through to enter Netflix House Philadelphia is not just for the looks. The revived department store will operate well outside of the King of Prussia Mall’s operating hours, making the exterior entrance especially necessary. Netflix House opens daily at 10 a.m. On Monday through Thursday, it closes at 10 p.m., but will remain open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays; Netflix House Philadelphia closes at 8 p.m. on Sundays. A significant staff is also a must: Netflix House Philadelphia “supports nearly 300 permanent jobs for area residents,” we’re told. That’s a large payroll.

In order to work, Netflix House needs to become something of a destination, and not just serve the suburbs of Philadelphia, as populated as the general radius may be.

“We believe that, you know, this will be a great reason for folks from all over the Philadelphia area, to come and come again repeatedly, because the accessibility makes it so easy,” Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters said at the opening ceremony. “But we also see it as yet another reason for fans from out of town to travel here, to eat in local restaurants, stay in local hotels and enjoy everything that not only this mall, but this whole area has to offer.”

It’s probably important to note Peters was standing next to the governor of Pennsylvania when he said that. Netflix House Philadelphia is about a 35-minute car ride from the Philadelphia airport.

I don’t really see either of those things happening to a degree that would make Netflix House a financial success — outside of mall-owner Simon granting Netflix a very sweetheart rental deal, that is. We don’t know the particulars of the rent, and apparently neither does Netflix’s chief marketing officer Marian Lee.

“I hope we got a good deal,” Lee told THR at the Monday press preview. “I’m not sure if we did, but the factor was really the space.”

To be fair, Netflix appears to look at its House as a test case for experiential entertainment and as a giant marketing platform to its core product. In the grand scheme of things, it may end up as a step two (or three, or four) into a whole new revenue stream, following some successes found across various popups.

Netflix is starting to amass some cool IP, but it’s still no Disney (or even Universal). Its content moves culture, but has not been around long enough to create multiple generations of lifelong fans. Without actual rides, I don’t see a reason for many people to “come and come again repeatedly.” Yes, Netflix House is set up to change with Netflix’s schedule, but to some degree, is also is what it is. Though future feature experiences may not be an escape room and a carnival, they also can’t be literally anything. Netflix House is a large space in a big mall, but it’s all relative: Disney World is 43 square miles.

Would I drive 35 minutes each way from Philadelphia to experience Netflix House? Yes, for sure. Would I do it every time Netflix cycles in a new experience? No. And I would not board an airplane for it — especially not in this economy government shutdown.

Intrinsic Philly tourism (and then Dallas, two cities that as a New York Giants fan I am predisposed to hating) will be key to the ultimate success or failure, which has yet to be written — including here. Netflix House is not a reason to fly to Philadelphia, it is a new thing to do on a rainy day during the trip you were taking there anyway. For me, it was like visiting a minus5 ICEBAR — cool to do a few times with new people and the booze helps, but I never need to go again.