Update 2: Per final broadcast ratings, Tuesday’s “The Dovekeepers” premiere averaged a 1.0 adults 18-49 rating and 8.98 million total viewers from 9-11PM.
Both numbers fell sharply from the 2.2 rating and 16.60 million viewership mark drawn by the miniseries’ “NCIS” lead-in.
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Update: While it easily ranked as the 9-11PM timeslot’s most-watched program, the premiere of CBS’ “The Dovekeepers” mini-series drew a very weak adults 18-49 rating.
Leading out of “NCIS” (2.1, 16.33 million), the first hour of “The Dovekeepers” drew a soft 1.1 adults 18-49 rating with 9.79 million viewers. Hour two followed with an even weaker 1.0 rating and 8.19 million viewers.
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While the premiere of CBS’ “The Dovekeepers” mini-series dominated its competition in the overnight household ratings, there is reason to doubt that the performance will look impressive in the finals.
Tuesday’s two-hour launch drew a 5.8 overnight household rating from 9-11PM. A significantly better household rating than that drawn by programs on NBC, ABC, FOX (9-10PM) and The CW (9-10PM), the rating dramatically trails that of its “NCIS” lead-in.
That show, which kicked off CBS’ evening at 8PM, drew a 10.3 overnight household rating.
In addition to losing a significant portion of its “NCIS” lead-in at the onset, Tuesday’s “Dovekeepers” broadcast also turned away many as it progressed. After opening with a 6.7 in the 9-9:30PM half hour, which was most directly boosted by “NCIS,” the broadcast followed with a 5.8 from 9:30-10PM, a 5.5 from 10-10:30PM and a 5.0 from 10:30-11PM. That kind of aggressive tune-out — particularly in the last hour, which not have featured an artificial lead-in boost — does not speak favorably of the program’s appeal.
Moreover, the fact that CBS programs tend to skew toward older viewers means the broadcast’s adults 18-49 rating will not be nearly as dominant as the 5.8 overnight household rating.