Ratings: Young Sheldon Stays Strong in Thursday Debut, Will & Grace Hits Lows
Young Sheldon is still putting up big boy numbers, now in its regular time slot.
With NFL preemptions subtracted out, the Big Bang Theory spinoff this Thursday delivered 12.7 million total viewers and a 2.2 demo rating (per finals), down from its boffo sneak preview (17.2 mil/3.8 on Premiere Week Monday) but still placing an easy second for the night and demonstrating 81 percent retention out of its sire.
In fact, in and of itself, Episode 2 of the prequel sitcom — which already has a full-season order — would tie The Good Doctor as the fall’s No. 2-rated series premiere (if one counts The Orville‘s special Sunday launch, which scored a 2.8).
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Opening the Eye’s night, Big Bang drew 14.1 million total viewers and a 2.7 rating, off just a tenth from its most recent Monday outing and right on par with last season’s final Thursday telecast. Leading out of Sheldon, Mom (8.5 mil/1.4) and Life in Pieces (6.7 mil/1.2) were on par with their finales.
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S.W.A.T. debuted to 6.7 mil and a 1.1 (and an average TVLine reader grade of “B”) — a slight improvement over Pure Genius‘ year-ago launch (6.2 mil/1.0) in the problematic time slot while falling well shy of fellow freshman SEAL Team‘s premiere numbers (9.9 mil/1.5).
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Elsewhere….
FOX | Gotham (2.75 mil/0.9) dipped to a new audience low while holding onto its demo low. The Orville (3.8 mil/1.0) slipped 10 percent and two tenths.
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THE CW | Supernatural (1.82 mil/0.6) and Arrow (1.33 mil/0.5) both held steady.
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ABC | Grey’s Anatomy (7.4 mil/1.8), Scandal (4.9 mil/1.1) and How to Get Away With Murder (3.6 mil/0.9) were all steady.
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NBC | With their fall finales, Great News (2.7 mil/0.7) slipped three tenths; Superstore (3.5 mil/1.0) and Chicago Fire (5.8 mil/1.0) were down two tenths; and The Good Place (3 mil/1.0) and Will & Grace (5.7 mil/1.6) dipped one tenth, with the latter marking revival lows. Find out when they return!
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Want scoop on any of the above shows? Email InsideLine@tvline.com and your question may be answered via Matt’s Inside Line.
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