Update 2: NBC’s “The Voice” commenced its seventh season with a 3.9 adults 18-49 rating and 12.95 million viewers.
Featuring the debuts of new coaches Pharrell and Gwen Stefani, the episode was the series’ lowest-rated series premiere to date.
Airing out of “The Voice,” the network’s “The Blacklist” kicked off its second season with a 3.4 rating and 12.34 million viewers. Down from the 3.8 delivered by the series premiere, the performance was nonetheless a strong one for a second season premiere with weaker lead-in support.
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Update: While both airings improved upon their season finale numbers, the season premieres of NBC’s “The Voice” and “The Blacklist” slipped on a year-over-year basis.
Facing competition from CBS’ “The Big Bang Theory” and “Scorpion” and FOX’s “Gotham” and “Sleepy Hollow,” NBC’s “The Voice” delivered a 3.9 adults 18-49 rating. Down from the 5.1 delivered for last fall’s season 5 premiere, the 3.9 is the series’ lowest premiere number to date.
The episode’s viewership average of 12.7 million was not, however, the lowest ever drawn by a “Voice” premiere.
“The Blacklist,” which aired in the 10PM timeslot, drew a 3.4 adults 18-49 rating with 12.5 million viewers. It was up from the 2.6 delivered by the season finale but down slightly from the 3.8 posted by last fall’s series premiere.
Considering the fact that it no longer benefited from series premiere curiosity and aired out of a weakened “The Voice,” the sophomore drama’s performance should nonetheless be viewed quite favorably.
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Facing stiff competition from CBS’ temporarily relocated “The Big Bang Theory” and FOX’s “Gotham” in the 8PM hour and CBS’ new drama “Scorpion” in the 9PM hour, NBC’s “The Voice” held up reasonably well in the overnights.
The show’s seventh season premiere drew a strong 8.5 overnight household rating. Likely to translate into a strong adults 18-49 number, the opener, which featured the debuts of new coaches Pharrell and Gwen Stefani, slipped just 8% from the 9.2 delivered by last fall’s fifth season premiere.
With its strong “The Voice” support and ample buzz intact, 10PM drama “The Blacklist” also had a good night. The season two premiere slipped just 3% year-over-year to deliver a strong 7.8 overnight household rating.
Beginning next week, however, “Blacklist” will face competition from CBS’ “NCIS: Los Angeles” (rather than modestly rated drama “Under the Dome,” which concluded its season this week). Given the potential for overlap, the game will get more challenging for NBC’s James Spader vehicle.
Note: The ratings posted early Tuesday morning are household numbers derived from metered market data. A follow-up report containing Fast National data for the adults 18-49 demographic and total viewership will be issued by noon ET.
