‘Empire’ Hits Rating Lows In Return From Hiatus, Still Tops Wednesday
The highest-rated scripted series on TV, Fox’s Empire, had a rough re-entry after a month-long hiatus for baseball coverage. In its first airing since October 12, the drama posted series-low marks of a 2.9 Live+Same Day rating in adults 18-49 and 8.1 million viewers. There could be an upward adjustment in the finals, but Empire is well below its previous L+SD demo mark of 3.4. (UPDATE: Empire did not get a bump in the finals.) Fox freshman Lethal Weapon (1.8) handled the lengthy hiatus better, up a tenth from its previous outing. Empire still was the top program Wednesday, securing a nightly victory for Fox in 18-49 and total viewers.
The two CBS series, which aired originals against Game 7 of the World Series and the CMA Awards last week, both rebounded: Survivor (1.9) was up 16%, Code Black (0.9) was up 29%. But Criminal Minds (1.3), which was in repeat last Wednesday, was down 0.3 from its previous original two weeks ago, which faced Game 2 of the World Series. The 1.3 represents a new series low for the long-running drama, a tenth below its previous L+SD low logged in the second week of this season.
NBC’s Wednesday lineup, pre-empted last week because of Game 7, was back to mixed results. Blindspot (1.0) ticked down a tenth from its last original, which represents a new L+SD low for the sophomore drama. Law & Order: SVU (1.3) also was off, by 0.2, but Chicago PD (1.3) was steady.
At ABC, The Goldbergs (2.0) was up 11% from its last original to tie a season high. Speechless (1.7), Modern Family (2.3) and Designated Survivor (1.2) were even with two weeks ago, the freshman drama tying a L+SD low, while Black-ish (1.6) slipped a tenth, followed by another tenth in the finals. Designated Survivor is currently edged by Chicago PD for No. 1 in the 10 PM hour for a second time.
The CW’s Arrow (0.7) ticked up a tenth from last week’s episode against Game 7 while Frequency (0.3) was steady.
Related stories
Hillary Clinton Concession Speech Delivers Record Ratings For Fox News Channel
Donald Trump Delivers Historic Barack Obama Numbers Across TV Landscape On Election Night
Donald Trump White House Win Delivers Most Watched Election Night In Cable News History
Get more from Deadline.com: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Newsletter
