Request: Black background for subtitles in Plex Web player

Server Version#: 1.21.1.3795
Player Version#: Web player

I watch video content with subtitles whenever they are available because it makes it much easier for me to follow dialog, and having a dark background behind the text makes a huge difference in readability to me. I was pleased to find a decent selection of subtitle customization options on the Android app. I set subtitles to display with a white text color and a dark background. It works perfectly and I have absolutely no complaints there.

However, the subtitle customization options seem to be more limited in Plex Web. There is no option to add a dark background that I have found so far. I would really appreciate it if someone could point out to me how to add a dark background to Plex Web subtitles or, if this is not currently possible, if it could be added as a setting to the web player,

This does seem like a fairly basic accessibility feature, and one that is present in at least the Android player, so I was surprised to find the functionality missing. Hopefully I’m just not seeing it?

I did try installing the Plex Media Player in hopes that this would solve my problem, though I found it to have even fewer options for subtitle customization.

Here’s what my subtitles are configured to look like on Netflix. I like this. It is extremely legible thanks to the high-contrast dark background around the subtitle text:

.

Here’s the same shot viewed in the Plex Web player. I do not like this. The text takes more effort and strain to read, especially when it’s set against a visually noisy background:

I realize that this difference will probably seem minor to those who don’t habitually watch content with subtitles. But options that ensure high contrast between text and background really do make a big difference to accessibility for those who rely on subtitles to understand what’s going on.

Thanks!

1 Like

PMP is unfortunately “in stasis” now. If you still want to use it, you may find this interesting: Customizing Subtitle appearance in Plex Player for Windows/Mac/Linux and Plex HTPC and PMP

This topic was automatically closed 90 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.