TV Ratings: ‘Yellowstone’ CBS Run Gets Off to Solid Start
Yellowstone can still draw a crowd — even for a repeat.
The Paramount Network hit made its CBS debut Sunday night and pulled in a solid audience. The broadcast network is airing the series, beginning with its first season, on Sunday nights in the fall to help fill out its strike-affected primetime lineup.
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It worked out well Sunday, with a two-episode block of Yellowstone averaging 6.83 million viewers. The show got an assist from the day’s biggest NFL game (25.78 million viewers) bleeding into primetime and the season opener for 60 Minutes (11.8 million). Big Brother closed out CBS’ night with 2.78 million viewers, below its usual Sunday average this season thanks largely to a late start time (10:49 p.m. ET).
By comparison, the first half of Yellowstone’s fifth season (which will be its last season) averaged 8.21 million same-day viewers for Paramount Network in November and December 2022. On CBS, The Equalizer drew just under 6.8 million in the post-60 Minutes slot last fall.
NBC’s Sunday Night Football scored an easy primetime win with 17.86 million viewers, down about 9 percent from the same week last year.
On Saturday, ESPN drew the biggest college football audience of the season (9.3 million viewers) for Deion Sanders-coached Colorado’s double overtime win over Colorado State. That edged out the 9.17 million viewers who watched Florida State beat LSU on Sept. 3.
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