During the week of March 17, 2014, ABC delivered 6 of the Top 20 TV shows in Adults 18-49, placing 3 in the Top 10 and claiming the No. 1 broadcast drama for the 3rd week in a row: "Scandal" - No. 4 (No. 1 broadcast drama), "DWTS" - No. 8, "Resurrection" - No. 9, "Grey's Anatomy" - No. 11, while "Once Upon a Time" and "Shark Tank" tied at No. 19. ABC's 18th season opener of "Dancing with the Stars" was the week's No. 2 TV show to CBS' "NCIS" in Total Viewers and the most-watched unscripted show, with a 1.9 million viewer advantage over runner-up "The Voice-Monday". In addition, "Dancing" outdelivered both installments of "American Idol" in Adults 18-49, leading "Idol-Wed" by 18% and "Idol-Thurs" by 30%. ABC (6.4 million) finished as the week's 2nd-most-watched TV network and ranked No. 1 for the 4th straight week with key Women: W18-34 (1.5/5) and W18-49 (2.0/6- tie).
Monday
ABC was the most-watched network (13.7 million) on Monday and took second in Adults 18-49 (2.3/7).
ABC marked its most-watched Monday of the season, drawing its largest audience on the night in 1 year - since 3/18/13.
"Dancing with the Stars" (8:00-10:01 p.m. - 15.4 million and 2.6/7 in AD18-49):
Up against competition from "The Voice" and one of the final episodes of "How I Met Your Mother" on St. Patrick's Day, ABC's 18th season premiere of "Dancing with the Stars" (15.4 million and 2.6/7) was up 9% in viewers and by 4% in Adults 18-49, compared to the last time that the show's opener had to face "The Voice" in Fall 2012 (14.1 million and 2.5/7 on 9/24/12). The premiere of "DWTS" was the No. 1 most social broadcast series on Monday with 176,265 tweets.
Please note: Last Fall the show premiered prior to the start of the official season against much lesser competition and last Spring the opener faced "The Biggest Loser" instead of "The Voice" on NBC.
· Leading its 2-hour time-slot, "Dancing with the Stars" was Monday's most-watched TV show, outdrawing NBC's "The Voice" in head to head competition by 1.9 million viewers (15.4 million vs. 13.5 million).
· Among Adults 18-49, ABC's "DWTS" (2.6/7) was higher rated than both telecasts of Fox's "American Idol" during the week (2.2/7 on Wednesday and a 2.0/6 on Thursday).
"Castle" (10:00-11:00 p.m. - 10.0 million and 1.8/5 in AD18-49):
"Castle" was up over its last original telecast (3/3/14) by 1.6 million viewers (10.0 million vs. 8.4 million) and by 13% in Adults 18-49 (1.8/5 vs. 1.6/5) to deliver its best numbers since the beginning of February - since 2/3/14. In addition, "Castle" towered over CBS' "Intelligence" in
The Hour in Total Viewers (+89% - 10.0 million vs. 5.3 million) and in Adults 18-49 (+64% - 1.8/5 vs. 1.1/3).
Tuesday
"Marvel Studios: Assembling a Universe" (8:00-9:01 p.m. - 4.1 million and 1.5/5 in AD18-49):
During the 8 o'clock hour against CBS' "NCIS" and NBC's "The Voice," ABC's special "Marvel Studios: Assembling a Universe" beat out Fox's 100th episode of "Glee" by 46% in Total Viewers (4.1 million vs. 2.8 million) and by 36% in Adults 18-49 (1.5/5 vs. 1.1/3). In addition, the Marvel Studios special topped CBS' first-run "NCIS" by 9% in Men 18-34 for 2nd place in the hour.
"The Goldbergs" (9:01-9:31 p.m. - 4.7 million and 1.7/5 in AD18-49):
Building on its lead-in (+15%/+13%) during the 9:00 p.m. half-hour,
ABC freshman "The Goldbergs" was up week to week by 7% in Total Viewers to deliver its most-watched telecast in 6 weeks and by 13% in Adults 18-49 to hit a 9 week-high - since 2/4/14 and 1/14/14, respectively.
"Trophy Wife" (9:31-10:00 p.m. - 3.2 million and 1.0/3 in AD18-49):
In the 9:30 p.m. half-hour, ABC's "Trophy Wife" was up for the 2nd week in Total Viewers (+7%) and Adults 18-49 (+11%), drawing its biggest audience in 6 weeks and its top young adult number in 9 weeks - since 2/4/14 and 1/14/14, respectively. In the half-hour, the
ABC freshman comedy increased its lead over Fox's freshman "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" to a best-yet margin of 28% in Total Viewers (3.2 million vs. 2.5 million), while delivering its most competitive finish yet in Adults 18-49 (1.0/3 vs. 1.1/3).
"Mind Games" (10:00-11:00 p.m. - 2.2 million and 0.7/2 in AD18-49):
In the 10:00 p.m. hour, ABC's "Mind Games" paced within 1-tenth of a rating point week to week in Adults 18-49.
Thursday
ABC won Thursday in Adults 18-49 (2.1/6), with "Scandal" (2.9/9) and "Grey's" (2.4/7) finishing as the night's Top 2 TV shows. In addition, the Net ranked No. 1 on Thursday for the 4th week in a row in Adults 18-34 and key Women (W18-34/W18-49).
"Once Upon a Time in Wonderland" (8:00-9:00 p.m. - 3.5 million and 0.8/3 in AD18-49):
During the 8 o'clock hour, ABC's "Once Upon a Time in Wonderland" was up 9% in Total Viewers and retained 100% of its week-ago Adult 18-49 number. It was the show's most-watched telecast since November - since 11/21/13. From 8:00-9:00 p.m., the
ABC freshman drama topped NBC's comedies by 9% in Total Viewers (3.5 million vs. 3.2 million for "Community"/"Parks and Recreation").
"Grey's Anatomy" (9:00-10:00 p.m. - 8.1 million and 2.4/7 in AD18-49):
Tripling its Adult 18-49 lead-in at 9:00 p.m. (+200%), ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" (2.4/7) once again won its hour, increasing its winning advantage over Fox's "American Idol" (2.0/6) to 20% (up from a 5% advantage the prior week). In fact, falling to a 2.0 Adult 18-49 rating for the first time ever, "American Idol" delivered another all-time series low.
· "Grey's" was up week to week in Total Viewers (+9%) and Adults 18-49 (+4%).
"Scandal" (10:00-11:00 p.m. - 9.1 million and 2.9/9 in AD18-49):
Building on its "Grey's" lead-in among Adults 18-49 at 10:00 p.m. (+21%), ABC's "Scandal" (2.9/9) more than doubled its drama competition in the hour, beating NBC's "Parenthood" by 123% (1.3/4).
· Growing week to week in Total Viewers (+11%) and Adults 18-49 (+4%), "Scandal" posted its best numbers since its mid-season return in February (on 2/27/14). In addition, the show was up over its year-ago telecast (8.5 million and 2.7/8 on 3/21/13) by 7% in Total Viewers and by 7% in Adults 18-49.
· "Scandal" continues to rank as Thursday's most social series (broadcast/cable) with 440,273 tweets last night, up 37% over last week. Season to date, "Scandal" has amassed over 5 million tweets, making it ABC's most social series this season.
Friday
ABC won its 4th consecutive Friday in Adults 18-49, beating runner-up NBC's all-original lineup by 23% (1.6/6 vs. 1.3/4). It was the Net's 8th straight non-Olympic Friday night victory in the key young adult sales demo.
ABC was also Friday's most-watched network overall (7.0 million).
· ABC's "Shark Tank" (2.1/7) and "20/20" (1.8/6) once again finished as the Top 2 TV shows on Friday in Adults 18-49. In Total Viewers, "20/20" (8.5 million) and "Shark Tank" (8.3 million) were also the night's Top 2 most-watched programs overall. In fact, "20/20" delivered its most-watched telecast in more than 4 years (since 2/5/10) and "Shark Tank" posted the series' biggest audience ever.
· "20/20" continued to rank as the night's No. 1 newsmagazine, outdelivering NBC's "Dateline" in Total Viewers and key Adults (AD18-49/AD25-54).
"Last Man Standing-R" (8:00-8:31 p.m. - 4.5 million and 0.9/3 in AD18-49): At 8:00 p.m., ABC's repeat "Last Man Standing" grew over the prior week's repeat by 13% in Adults 18-49.
"The Neighbors" (8:31-9:00 p.m. - 3.7 million and 0.9/3 in AD18-49): In the 8:30 p.m. half-hour, ABC's "The Neighbors" was up 13% week to week in Adults 18-49.
"Shark Tank" (9:00-10:01 p.m. - 8.3 million and 2.1/7 in AD18-49): More than doubling its lead-in at 9:00 p.m. (+122%) in Adults 18-49, ABC's "Shark Tank" beat out its closest competition in
The Hour by 40% (2.1/7 vs. 1.5/5 - NBC's "Grimm"). The
ABC unscripted series gained 11% week to week in Total Viewers for its largest audience ever and grew 5% in Adults 18-49 to match its 2nd-best rating this season. Season to date, "Shark Tank" is up double digits in Total Viewers (+13%) and Adults 18-49 (+10%) over the same point last year, on track for the series' strongest season ever.
"20/20" (10:01-11:00 p.m. - 8.5 million and 1.8/6 in AD18-49): For the 4th week in row, ABC's "20/20" won the 10 o'clock hour in Adults 18-49 (1.8/6), doubling NBC's "Hannibal" (+100% - 0.9/3). The
ABC newsmagazine was also the most-watched show overall in the slot and won
The Hour for the 4th straight week in the key Adult 25-54 news demo (2.4/7). "20/20" featured exclusive reporting on a cold case murder that the
ABC newsmagazine put back in the spotlight five years ago, leading to a bombshell decision in court just this week. "20/20" was up week to week by 21% in Total Viewers to draw its largest audience since February 2010 ?-- since 2/5/10. Building year to year in Total Viewers (+20%), Adults 18-49 (+7%) and Adults 25-54 (+5%), "20/20" is trending to deliver its most-watched season in 4 years - since the 2009-10 season.
Sunday
Opposite
CBS with a high-rated NCAA Basketball Tournament
Primetime overrun into the 7:00 p.m. hour and a surprise episode of "The Good Wife" that killed off a popular lead character,
ABC finished a strong second on Sunday among the broadcast nets in Adults 18-49 (1.9/5), beating
FOX by 12% (1.7/5) and
NBC by 90% (1.0/3).
· For the 3rd straight week, ABC's "Resurrection" was Sunday's No. 1 broadcast series in Adults 18-49 (2.5/6).
"America's Funniest Home Videos" (7:00-8:00 p.m. - 6.9 million and 1.4/4 in AD18-49):
Taking second to CBS' NCAA Basketball/"60 Minutes" in the 7:00 p.m. hour, ABC's "America's Funniest Home Videos" (1.4/4) beat Fox's original animated comedies by 8% in Adults 18-49 ("Bob's Burgers"/"American Dad" = 1.3/4). "AFHV" was up 8% week to week in Total Viewers and was up over its year-ago telecast in both Total Viewers (+1%) and Adults 18-49 (+8%).
"Once Upon a Time" (8:00-9:00 p.m. - 6.9 million and 2.1/6 in AD18-49):
Jumping over its lead-in at 8:00 p.m. (+50%) to beat CBS' NCAA Basketball-driven programming ("60 Minutes"/"Amazing Race" = 1.8/5), ABC's "Once Upon a Time" (2.0/6) finished No. 1 in its hour for the 3rd week in a row among Adults 18-49 (2.1/6 - tied w/Fox), beating NBC's series debut of "American Dream Builders" by 133% (0.9/2). The
ABC drama was once again the No. 1 most social series on broadcast Sunday night with 47,658 tweets.
"Resurrection" (9:00-10:01 p.m. - 9.5 million and 2.5/6 in AD18-49):
Building on its lead-in by 19% at 9:00 p.m. in Adults 18-49, ABC's "Resurrection" (2.5/6) once again more than doubled NBC's "Believe" (+108% - 1.2/3) in the hour, while leading by 47% over programming on both
CBS ("Amazing Race"/"The Good Wife" = 1.7/4) and
FOX ("Cosmos" = 1.7/4). "Resurrection" improved its hour year to year by 51% in Total Viewers and by 39% in Adults 18-49 ("Revenge" = 6.3 million and 1.8/4 on 3/24/13).
"Revenge" (10:01-11:00 p.m. - 5.7 million and 1.5/4 in AD18-49):
During the 10 o'clock hour, ABC's "Revenge" was the No. 1 drama in its slot for the 3rd straight week among Adults 18-49 (1.5/4), beating NBC's "Crisis" by an even wider margin of 15% (1.3/3) and leading CBS' drama combo of "The Good Wife"/"The Mentalist" by 15% (1.3/3). "Revenge" improved its hour year to year by 25% in Adults 18-49, over original drama programming on the same night last year ("Red Widow" = 1.2/3).
WEEK NO. 26: ADULTS 18-49 TOTAL VIEWERS
No.1
CBS 1.8 No.1
CBS 7,950,000
No.2
NBC 1.6 No.2
ABC 6,420,000
No.3
ABC 1.5 No.3
NBC 6,340,000
No.4
FOX 1.3 No.4
FOX 4,300,000
No.5
CW 0.7 No.5
CW 1,740,000
Source: The Nielsen Company, National, Live+ Same Day Program Ratings for week of 03/17/14.
