Still the subject of ample media attention and critical acclaim, Showtime’s “Masters of Sex” cannot transform its buzz into strong live+same-day television ratings.
Sunday’s season three premiere was actually the least-watched episode yet.
Airing out of the “Ray Donovan” season premiere, Sunday’s “Masters” drew a 0.13 adults 18-49 rating with 583,000 viewers. Both series lows, the numbers markedly trail those of the season two premiere (0.32, 825,000) and season two finale (0.28, 889,000).
The aforementioned season three “Ray Donovan” premiere drew a 0.32 adults 18-49 rating with 1.035 million viewers. Its performance was also the worst ever for the series.
Particularly disappointing about the “Ray Donovan” performance is the fact that the series ended its second season on a ratings high note. After opening its second season with a 0.4 rating and 1.22 million total viewers, the drama ended up closing the season with a considerably stronger 0.7 and 1.966 million viewers.