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 "title": "Day 5",
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 "excerpt": "Day 5 is an American post-apocalyptic drama web series produced by Rooster Teeth, set after a sleep epidemic in which falling asleep causes death; it ran from 2016 to 2017.",
 "snippet": "Day 5 is an American post-apocalyptic drama web series produced by Rooster Teeth, set after a sleep epidemic in which falling asleep causes death; it ran from 2016 to 2017.",
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 "markdown": "# Day 5\n\n**Day 5** is an American live-action post-apocalyptic drama web series produced by [Rooster Teeth](https://www.edgepedia.org/rooster-teeth), set in the immediate aftermath of a fatal sleep epidemic in which falling asleep causes death. Created by [Burnie Burns](https://www.edgepedia.org/burnie-burns), Matt Hullum, Josh Flanagan, and Chris Demarais, it ran for two seasons, from June 19, 2016 to September 24, 2017, and was Rooster Teeth's first live-action dramatic series.<sup>[1](https://roosterteeth.fandom.com/wiki/Day_5)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[2](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/showbiz/showbizabroad/571435/day-5-emerges-as-rooster-teeth-s-sleeper-hit-of-the-summer/story/)</sup>\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Premise | Most of the world dies in their sleep; survivors battle sleep deprivation while searching for the cause of the epidemic<sup>[1](https://roosterteeth.fandom.com/wiki/Day_5)</sup> |\n| Creators | Burnie Burns, Matt Hullum, Josh Flanagan, and Chris Demarais<sup>[1](https://roosterteeth.fandom.com/wiki/Day_5)</sup> |\n| Run | Season 1: June 19 – July 31, 2016 (6 episodes); Season 2: August 6 – September 24, 2017 (8 episodes)<sup>[3](https://www.epguides.com/Day5/)</sup> |\n| Main cast | Jesse C. Boyd as Jake, Walker Satterwhite as Sam, Stephanie Drapeau as Ally, Davi Jay as Ellis<sup>[4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/day-5/season-1)</sup> |\n| Episode length | Roughly a full TV hour per the production wiki; listings give run times of about 41 to 48 minutes<sup>[1](https://roosterteeth.fandom.com/wiki/Day_5)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[3](https://www.epguides.com/Day5/)</sup> |\n| IMDb rating | 7.3/10 from about 1,600 user ratings; unweighted mean 7.7<sup>[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5707408/ratings/)</sup> |\n| Status | Cancelled after two seasons; Rooster Teeth itself shut down in March 2024<sup>[3](https://www.epguides.com/Day5/)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[6](https://www.axios.com/local/austin/2024/03/06/rooster-teeth-shutdown-warner-bros-discovery)</sup> |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Premise and story\n\nThe series opens on the fifth day of an apocalypse in which most of humanity died in their beds. Jake (Jesse C. Boyd), an addict whose drug binge kept him awake, emerges unaware of what has happened and finds the bodies of his family while a warning against sleep blares from a television.<sup>[2](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/showbiz/showbizabroad/571435/day-5-emerges-as-rooster-teeth-s-sleeper-hit-of-the-summer/story/)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/day_5/s01)</sup> He is joined by Sam (Walker Satterwhite), a 13-year-old; Ally (Stephanie Drapeau), a night-shift doctor; and Ellis (Davi Jay), a red-eye pilot who may have found a key to the mystery. The group searches for the cause of the sleep epidemic while managing sleepless fatigue and encroaching delirium.<sup>[2](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/showbiz/showbizabroad/571435/day-5-emerges-as-rooster-teeth-s-sleeper-hit-of-the-summer/story/)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/day_5/s01)</sup>\n\nThe story is told through both flashbacks and a forward-moving plot, which Matt Hullum described as \"a 24 meets Lost vibe\".<sup>[8](https://www.fastcompany.com/3052235/how-homegrown-production-empire-rooster-teeth-is-gunning-for-hbo-and-netflix)</sup> Season 1's six episodes carry titles from \"Waking Nightmare\" to \"Wide Awake\"; season 2's eight episodes run from \"Manifest Destiny\" to \"Dawn\".<sup>[3](https://www.epguides.com/Day5/)</sup>\n\n## Production history\n\n**A long development.** Work on the idea began in 2011, and it was first planned as a feature-length movie, then reworked into a 45-minute short, before it took shape as a series. According to Rooster Teeth chief creative officer Burnie Burns, it went through at least three iterations before release, including a nearly completed feature-length film. A trailer premiered at RTX 2014, and the cast was announced in March 2016 with filming starting that same month.<sup>[1](https://roosterteeth.fandom.com/wiki/Day_5)</sup>\n\nThe premise itself was shaped by budget. Burns conceived the idea partly to curb the costs of shooting a live-action apocalypse film: \"If everyone died in their beds, you wouldn't have to shoot stuff like barricades being overrun,\" as showrunner Josh Flanagan explained in an io9 interview.<sup>[2](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/showbiz/showbizabroad/571435/day-5-emerges-as-rooster-teeth-s-sleeper-hit-of-the-summer/story/)</sup>\n\n**Release pattern.** The first episode premiered on June 19, 2016 exclusively for FIRST members, with the general public able to watch it on the Rooster Teeth website and YouTube; subsequent episodes had FIRST member exclusivity. Season 1 concluded on July 31, 2016, and showrunner Josh Flanagan held a Reddit AMA the following day. A second season was announced in February 2017 and premiered on August 6, 2017, with guest stars William Sadler and [Jake Busey](https://www.edgepedia.org/jake-busey).<sup>[1](https://roosterteeth.fandom.com/wiki/Day_5)</sup>\n\n**Texas filming.** Season 2 was shot in Texas from February 21 to May 19, 2017, in Alpine, Austin, Georgetown, San Marcos, and Taylor, according to the state's production filmography.<sup>[9](https://gov.texas.gov/uploads/files/film/tx_made_filmography.pdf)</sup> A Spectrum News report on the state's web production industry noted that the Day 5 set looked like a full-fledged film production.<sup>[10](https://spectrumlocalnews.com/tx/austin/news/2017/05/9/will--web-based--be-the-sustaining-force-the-texas-film-industry-needs--)</sup>\n\n## Reception\n\nThe series drew mixed to positive reviews. Its IMDb rating stands at 7.3/10 from about 1,600 ratings, with an unweighted mean of 7.7; the highest-rated episodes on IMDb include season 1's \"Beacons in the Dark\" at 8.7.<sup>[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5707408/ratings/)</sup> Rotten Tomatoes lists no critic reviews for season 1, with an audience score of 100% from fewer than 50 ratings.<sup>[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/day_5/s01)</sup> A GMA News review of the pilot called it \"a pitch perfect introduction to its singular, manic, end-of-the-world scenario\", noting the oversaturated color schemes and the Rooster Teeth signature humor that never overshadows the premise.<sup>[2](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/showbiz/showbizabroad/571435/day-5-emerges-as-rooster-teeth-s-sleeper-hit-of-the-summer/story/)</sup> Audience reviews have praised the premise and production quality while some criticized gun violence and pacing.<sup>[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/day_5/s01)</sup>\n\n## Aftermath and availability\n\nDay 5 was canceled after its second season and is listed as canceled/ended.<sup>[3](https://www.epguides.com/Day5/)</sup> Its parent company Rooster Teeth was shut down by [Warner Bros. Discovery](https://www.edgepedia.org/warner-bros-discovery) on March 6, 2024, with the parent aiming to sell the studio's catalog and intellectual property.<sup>[6](https://www.axios.com/local/austin/2024/03/06/rooster-teeth-shutdown-warner-bros-discovery)</sup> In February 2025, a revival of the Rooster Teeth brand was reported, with an audio-based program called \"Again\", described as along the lines of Day 5, among the announced projects.<sup>[11](https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/news/2025/02/06/rooster-teeth-burns-warner-austin-online-studio.html)</sup>\n\nIn the United States, season 1 has been available free with ads on Tubi TV and Fawesome.<sup>[4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/day-5/season-1)</sup> Availability varies by country; the old Rooster Teeth release does not establish where the show can be streamed now, so checking a current listing before subscribing is advisable.<sup>[12](https://theattreviews.com/article/day-5-review-2016)</sup>\n\n## References\n\n1. [Day 5 | The Rooster Teeth Wiki | Fandom](https://roosterteeth.fandom.com/wiki/Day_5)\n2. ['Day 5' emerges as Rooster Teeth's sleeper hit of the summer, GMA News Online (June 27, 2016)](https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/showbiz/showbizabroad/571435/day-5-emerges-as-rooster-teeth-s-sleeper-hit-of-the-summer/story/)\n3. [Day 5 (a Titles & Air Dates Guide), epguides.com](https://www.epguides.com/Day5/)\n4. [Day 5 Season 1 - watch full episodes streaming online, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/day-5/season-1)\n5. [Day 5 (TV Series 2016–2017) - Ratings, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5707408/ratings/)\n6. [Rooster Teeth calls it quits, Axios Austin (March 6, 2024)](https://www.axios.com/local/austin/2024/03/06/rooster-teeth-shutdown-warner-bros-discovery)\n7. [Day 5: Season 1, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/day_5/s01)\n8. [How Homegrown Production Empire, Rooster Teeth, Is Gunning For HBO and Netflix, Fast Company](https://www.fastcompany.com/3052235/how-homegrown-production-empire-rooster-teeth-is-gunning-for-hbo-and-netflix)\n9. [Film and Television Projects Made in Texas (1910–2025), Texas Governor's Office](https://gov.texas.gov/uploads/files/film/tx_made_filmography.pdf)\n10. [Will 'Web-Based' Be the Sustaining Force the Texas Film Industry Needs?, Spectrum News (May 9, 2017)](https://spectrumlocalnews.com/tx/austin/news/2017/05/9/will--web-based--be-the-sustaining-force-the-texas-film-industry-needs--)\n11. [Rooster Teeth aims for revival after shuttering last year, Austin Business Journal (February 6, 2025)](https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/news/2025/02/06/rooster-teeth-burns-warner-austin-online-studio.html)\n12. [Day 5: A Very Bad Time to Feel Tired, TheAttReviews](https://theattreviews.com/article/day-5-review-2016)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Unscripted, reality, and web-native series › Web-native and streaming-original series › Genre web series: horror, thriller, science fiction, and mystery*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n",
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 "speakable": "Day 5 is an American post-apocalyptic drama web series produced by Rooster Teeth, set after a sleep epidemic in which falling asleep causes death; it ran from 2016 to 2017."
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