Facing competition from the NBA Finals, Wednesday’s fourth season “The Americans” finale fell to a series low in live+same-day viewership.
According to live+same-day data posted by Showbuzz, the episode drew a 0.21 adults 18-49 rating and 768,000 total viewers. The demo rating ties a series low, while the viewership mark represents a new one. Last week’s episode drew a 0.31 and 0.93 million viewers.
In addition to the highly rated basketball competition, “The Americans” faced a DVR snafu: some cable systems had an earlier FX program erroneously listed as the first-run of Wednesday’s “Americans” finale, meaning the actual broadcast would have been flagged as a re-run.
While the issue doubtfully made a huge impact, it potentially presented some “Americans” fans from successfully recording — and then watching — the show before the L+SD deadline.
FX has also spoken on the record about its disinterest in live+same-day ratings. Citing changes in viewership patterns, FX does not evaluate performance until data from time-shifted viewership is available.
“The Americans,” moreover, is not living or dying by ratings. Ratings certainly still matter from a business standpoint, but when it comes to the show’s fate, FX has already ordered two final seasons (consisting of 13 and 10 episodes, respectively).
