Ratings: “SNL” Tops Last Year’s Premiere; Adam Driver & Kanye West Starred

“SNL” with Adam Driver and Kanye West was up 7% from last year.

Kanye West & Lil Pump | Will Heath/NBC

Featuring host Adam Driver and musical guest Kanye West, this weekend’s “Saturday Night Live” premiere outdrew last year’s season opener.

Citing metered market data, NBC says the episode drew a 4.8 overnight household rating. It posted a 2.3 adults 18-49 rating in the Top 25 markets.

Last year’s opener (host Ryan Gosling, musical guest Jay-Z) drew a 4.5 in households and a 2.1 in the demo.

This Saturday’s episode was, moreover, one of the best-rated season premieres in recent memory. Since 2012, only one season premiere (2016 opener with Margot Robbie and The Weekend; 5.8 rating) has posted a better number.

Not simply strong in comparison to premieres, this weekend’s episode outperformed all but one episode from last season (January 27 episode with Will Ferrell and Chris Stapleton; 4.9).

Brian Cantor

Brian Cantor is the editor-in-chief for Headline Planet. He has been a leading reporter in the music, movie, television and sporting spaces since 2002. Brian's reporting has been cited by major websites like BuzzFeed, Billboard, the New Yorker and The Fader -- and shared by celebrities like Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber and Nicki Minaj. Contact Brian at brian.cantor[at]headlineplanet.com.