HBO’s “Sharp Objects” endured declines in adults 18-49 and overall viewership this week.
According to live+same-day data posted by Showbuzz, Sunday’s episode drew a 0.22 adults 18-49 rating and averaged 0.93 million overall viewers. The numbers trail the 0.28 rating and 1.03 million viewer mark posted by last week’s episode.
This week’s episode marked the fourth installment of “Sharp Objects.” For the sake of comparison, the fourth episode of fellow HBO event series “Big Little Lies” drew a 0.36 rating and 1.04 million overall viewers. The fourth “The Night Of” broadcast posted a 0.50 in the demo and 1.34 million in viewership.
Those shows, moreover, would go on to post big ratings gains in the latter halves of their seasons. It remains to be seen if “Sharp Objects” will rise over the next few episodes.
Viewing “Sharp Objects” strictly through the live+same-day lens is, of course, insufficient. Unlike ad-supported networks, HBO generates its revenue from subscriptions. On-demand, encore, DVR and streaming viewers — and there to tend to be plenty for HBO programs — are thus quite valuable.
— “Sharp Objects” led into “Succession,” which drew a 0.13 rating and 0.56 million viewers. “Last Week Tonight” followed with a 0.33 and 0.92 million.