‘The Walking Dead’ Ratings: Season 5 Debut Shatters Cable Records As 17.3M Watch by Dominic Patten October 13, 2014 1:31pm With a lot of red meat and explosions galore, the zombie apocalypse returned to AMC last night bigger than ever. The Season 5 debut of The Walking Dead pulled in 17.3 million total viewers on Sunday at 9 PM with 11 million among adults 18-49. With a rise of 7% and 6%, respectively, that viewership and demo series record chews up the previous high of 16.1 million watching and 10.4 million among the 18-49s that the Season 4 premiere of the blockbuster series drew on October 13 last year. (Watch the first four minutes of last night’s episode here.) As it stands right now, the hourlong S5 opener “No Sanctuary,” directed by EP Greg Nicotero, has scored a touchdown over the NFL, Fox’s football overrun and NBC’s Sunday Night Football among the key demo to win primetime in both broadcast and cable. That could change in the final numbers, as it did with last season’s debut, which eventually saw a slim SNF win after what initially looked like a WD victory. However, the Philadelphia Eagles crushing 27-0 win over the NY Giants last night and the ensuing ratings fall from last week and last year makes it a hard one for the usually unbeatable NFL and SNF to turn around this time. Last season, The Walking Dead not only proved the most successful nonsports show on TV among the 18-49s but actually beat the NFL twice and the Winter Olympics three weeks in a row.
17.3 million on a non-network channel against a great Sunday Night Football match-up. I know the game became a blowout but it wasn't one at 9pm. The Walking Dead might have a longer run than Bonanza.
'American Horror Story' renewed for fifth season after setting ratings record It’s very good to be a Freak: FX has just announced that the premiere of American Horror Story: Freak Show has set a record as the most-watched TV episode in the network’s history(!), with 10 million total viewers (6.54 million 18-49), according to Live+3 numbers. That bests last year’s Coven premiere of 7.27 million by 38 percent. Highly recommend this show.
CNN is reporting AGT is now being screened by ISIS recruitment officers as evidence of crumbling American empire.
