The momentum “True Blood” developed during its breakout second season continued into this summer, as the show’s third season premiere drew big ratings for HBO.
Marking an increase of nearly 40% from last year’s premiere, “True Blood” scored 5.1 million viewers for its season opener this Sunday. A same-night replay airing added 1.3 million viewers to the total.
After starting as a moderate performer for HBO, “True Blood” emerged as a phenomenon, at least in premium cable terms, for its second season on the pay network. Retaining (if not building on) this peak momentum will obviously be the big challenge for “True Blood” this season.