Programming Insider

Did You Know?
“Star Trek: The Next Generation” was the first of the “Star Trek” spin-off series following the original on NBC from 1966-69 (and prior to “Star Trek: Deep Space 9,” “Star Trek: Voyager” and “Star Trek: Enterprise,” which was originally called just “Enterprise”).  It aired for seven seasons.  The next spin-off, “Star Trek: Discovery,” will air on CBS All Access in 2017.

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Tuesday 9/27/16
Note: The following ratings do not include the Philadelphia and Boston markets.

Household Rating/Share
CBS: 8.3 rating/14 share, NBC: 7.2/12, ABC: 4.5/ 7, Fox: 1.4/ 2, CW: 0.5/ 1

-Percent Change From the Year-Ago Evening:
ABC: +32, CBS: + 1, NBC: no change, CW: -17, Fox: -56

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-Winners:
“NCIS” (CBS), “The Voice” (NBC), “Bull” (CBS), “NCIS: New Orleans” (CBS), “This Is Us” (NBC)

-Honorable Mention:
“Dancing With the Stars” (ABC)

-Losers (excluding repeats):
“Brooklyn Nine-Nine” (Fox), “New Girl” (Fox), “Scream Queens” (Fox), Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD” (ABC)

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Ratings Analysis:
CBS is the network to beat in the Tuesday household overnights, dominating in all six half-hours care of its combination of “NCIS” (#1 for the night: 9.5 rating/15 share), week two of drama “Bull” (8.6/14) and relocated “NCIS: New Orleans” (6.9/12), which was 10 percent above failed year-ago 10 p.m. drama “Limitless” (6.3/11 on 9/29/15).  But NBC is a lock in all the key demographic groups as a result of two more hours of “The Voice” (#2: 7.9/13 from 8-10 p.m.) and week two of just full season-renewed “This Is Us” (#2: 5.7/10).

Comparably, “Bull” dipped by a typical 11 percent from its week ago-week debut (9.7/ 5 on Sept. 20, which translated into 15.56 million viewers and a 2.2 rating/7 share in adults 18-49, based on the Live + Same Day data).  “This Is Us,” meanwhile, slipped by 11 percent in the overnights from its opener (6.4/11 on Sept. 20, which resulted in 10.07 million viewers and a 2.8/10 in adults 18-49, based on the Live + Same Day data).  But “This Is Us” was still a hefty 42 percent above short-lived variety hour “The Best Time Ever With Neil Patrick Harris” on the year-ago evening (4.0/ 7 on 9/29/15).

For more (including the breakdown by half-hour), click here

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Live + Same Day Data
-Sunday 9/25/16: Click here
-Monday 9/26/16: Click here

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Weekly Ratings Scorecard
Week of Sept. 19, 2016 (Premiere Week)

-Total Viewers:
CBS: 11.18 million (+ 2), NBC: 8.74 (- 2), ABC: 5.85 (-16), Fox: 3.64 (-14), CW: 900,000 (-15)

-Adults 18-49:
CBS: 2.5 rating/9 share (no change), NBC: 2.5/ 9 (- 7), ABC: 1.3/ 5 (-24), Fox: 1.2/ 4 (-25), CW: 0.2/ 1 (-33)

-Adults 25-54:
CBS: 3.2/10 (no change), NBC: 3.1/ 9 (- 6), ABC: 1.7/ 5 (-19), Fox: 1.4/ 4 (-22), CW: 0.3/ 1 (-25)

-Adults 18-34:
NBC: 1.8/ 8 (-10), CBS: 1.7/ 8 (no change), ABC: 0.9/ 4 (-25), Fox: 0.9/ 4 (-36), CW: 0.2/ 1 (no change)

First Presidential Debate Scores a Record 84-Million Viewers
The latest tally for the first presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump is now estimated at a record 84 million viewers from 9-10:39 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 26 (based on 13 networks airing it live).  The record was previously held by Jimmy Carter vs. Ronald Reagan, which received a total of 80.6 million viewers on October 28, 1989.

This does not include the 3 million viewers who tuned in on PBS, or who watched the debate on live streaming services. While the final tally will increase, the debate will still fall short of the 100+ million viewers some analysts were predicting.

Source: Nielsen Media Research

Amazon Orders Three New Series, Including Revival of “The Tick”
Half-hour satire “The Tick,” which originally aired on Fox in 2001-02 and is based on the comic book series of the same name, is being resurrected on Amazon.  In this new version, an underdog accountant with no superpowers at all (Griffin Newman) realizes his city is owned by a global supervillain long-thought dead. As he struggles to uncover the conspiracy, he falls in league with a strange blue superhero: the Tick (Peter Serafinowicz).

The streaming service has also ordered dramas “I Love Dick” and “Jean-Claude Van Johnson.”  Based on the book by Chris Kraus, “I Love Dick” follows Chris (Kathryn Hahn) and Sylvere (Griffin Dunne) as they take up an artist residency in Marfa, Texas. There they meet Dick (Kevin Bacon), who becomes both an object of desire and a symbol of female obsession for Chris. And “ Jean-Claude Van Johnson” features Jean-Claude Van Damme as a “global martial arts and film sensation” who is also an undercover agent hunting down bad guys.

The three series will premiere exclusively on Amazon Prime Video in 2017 in the U.S., UK, Germany, Austria and Japan.

NBC Issues Full Season Order to “This Is Us”
Just two episodes in and optimistic NBC has granted freshman drama “This Is Us” a full season episode order.  But full season, in this case, is an additional five episodes taking it to 18 in this first season.  Debuting in the Tuesday 10 p.m. hour on Sept. 27 out of two-hours of “The Voice,” “This Is Us” opened with 10.1 million viewers and a 2.8 rating in adults 18-49, based on the Live + Same Day data, making it NBC’s highest rated scripted program in the time period since “Parenthood” in 2010.  Based on Live + 3 Day data (which includes three days of DVR usage), “This Is Us” rose to 13.5 million viewers with a 4.2 rating in the demo, which is the best-ever L+3 lift for an NBC series premiere and biggest for any new series on any network in 20 months (since “Empire’s” L+3 gain of +1.5 rating points on Fox Jan. 7, 2015).

The 4.2 adult 18-49 rating for “This Is Us” in L+3 makes it the highest-rated series premiere on any network in the past year (since “Blindspot” on Sept. 21, 2015, 4.4 rating in L+3) and the 13.5 million viewers makes it the most-watched drama premiere on NBC in the past year (also since “Blindspot,” 15.2 million in L+3).

“This Is Us” will remain in the Tuesday 10 p.m. hour until Oct. 4.  One week later it moves to Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET into the return of “Chicago Fire” at 10 p.m. ET.

FX Renews “The Strain” for a Fourth – and Final – Season
FX has picked-up vampire drama “The Strain” for a fourth season.  But this fourth season will ultimately be the final season. “We sincerely thank Carlton Cuse, Guillermo del Toro, Chuck Hogan and their creative team as well as the fantastic cast for three exciting seasons of “The Strain,” FX president of original programming Nick Grad said in a statement. “Though we’re sad to see it go, we fully support the way in which they are crafting the fourth season’s dramatic conclusion.”

“The Strain,” which debuted on July 13, 2014, is based on the best-selling trilogy of the same name by Del Toro and Hogan.  It stars Corey Stoll, David Bradley, Kevin Durand, Jonathan Hyde, Richard Sammel, Natalie Brown, Miguel Gomez, Max Charles, Ruta Gedmintas, Rupert Penry-Jones, Samantha Mathis and Joaquín Cosío.

“The Strain” is now the third latest series to end its run following the cancellations of drama “Tyrant” and Denis Leary comedy “Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll.”

Bounce TV sitcom “Family Time” will open its new season on Tuesday, Oct. 4 at 9 p.m. ET.  The scoop: “Family Time” follows the lives of the Stallworth family, headed by the dad Tony, a struggling general contractor played by Omar Gooding, and his wife Lisa, an unfulfilled stay-at-home mom portrayed by Angell Conwell. When they are not battling each other, they are contending with a host of family, friends, and neighbors including their mischievous children Devin (Bentley Kyle Evans, Jr.) and Ebony (Jayla Calhoun), Tony’s financially-challenged best friend Donnie (Clayton Thomas) and Lisa’s feisty sisters Rachel (Tanjareen Thomas) and Lori (Paula Jai Parker).

National Geographic’s “Explorer” will return in a newly reimagined format on Nov. 14, 2016 at 10 p.m. ET.  Hosted by Richard Bacon “Explorer” will use a mix of intrepid field pieces, roundtable discussions and in-depth interviews in a continuation of the series’ legacy of pushing the boundaries of journalism.  Produced by National Geographic Studios, “Explorer” will air on a weekly basis on National Geographic Channel around the world in 171 countries in 45 languages and in Spanish on Nat Geo Mundo.

“The 71^st Annual Tony Awards” will be broadcast live from New York City Sunday, June 11, 2017 at 8 p.m. ET CBS.  “The Tony Awards,” which honors theater professionals for distinguished achievement on Broadway, has been broadcast on CBS since 1978. The nominations will be announced on Tuesday, May 2.

Fox’s fall line-up needs a serious overhaul  
From Campaign US: One week into the new television season and it’s clear that Fox is in for a long and grueling one. For the first time in fifteen years, Fox won’t have “American Idol” to give it a ratings boost in January, and it looks like the troubled network will need it. It finished a distant fourth in total viewership last week—not a good start to the fall season.

Based on the Live + Same day data from Nielsen for Sept. 19-25, Fox drew an audience of 3.64 million viewers, also coming in fourth among the key adult 18-49 and adult 25-54 demographics. Compared to last year’s opening week, Fox suffered its largest loss, 36%, in adults 18-34.

Aside from a decent Wednesday, which houses the revival of “Lethal Weapon” into season three of “Empire,” Fox is struggling across the board. Without the reliable midseason lift of “American Idol,” the network is feeling the effects of its over-dependence on the singing competition and its lack of planning for a future without it.  For more at Campaign US, click here