NBC’s star-studded “SNL 40” celebration was an absolute monster in the ratings.
Per fast national data, the broadcast averaged a whopping 7.8 adults 18-49 rating with 23.14 million during the 8-11PM ET primetime portion. Data for the 11:00-11:30PM half hour was not available at press time.
Nothing else on broadcast came close to matching the “Saturday Night Live” special’s powerhouse performance.
The only strike against the otherwise superb showing is the fact that the broadcast lost viewers with each passing hour. It suffered a particularly sharp decline during the 10-11PM ET portion.
“SNL 40” opened with an 8.3 rating and 25.65 million viewers (and peaked in the 8:30-9PM ET portion). The broadcast managed to hold steady in adults 18-49 during the 9PM hour despite the arrival of competition from “The Walking Dead,” but its viewership mark did endure a decline to 23.97 million.
It then slipped to a 6.9 rating with 19.81 million viewers during the 10PM hour. And since it trended downward within that hour (7.3 from 10-10:30PM versus a 6.6 from 10:30PM-11PM), there is a good chance the decline continued into the final 11-11:30PM portion.
Still, the only takeaway associated with this performance is that viewers showed up for the “SNL” anniversary special.
They also tuned into the red carpet special. That special, which filled the 7-8PM hour, drew a 3.0 rating with 11.13 million viewers. It was second only to the actual “SNL 40” special in both regards.
