Nik Wallenda Canyon Walk Earns 13M Viewers

Walk accounted for about 24 minutes of two-hour special, which drew 8.5 million total viewers

Discovery's "Skywire Live With Nik Wallenda" drew 8.5 million total viewers, and 13 million viewers during the minutes when Wallenda's crossed the Little Colorado River gorge near the Grand Canyon.

Wallenda's walk across the length of four football fields — over a height higher than the Empire State Building — accounted for roughly 24 minutes of the two-hour special. The rest of the time was filled with interviews, backround, and sweeping shots of the canyon.

The most-watched show on broadcast television Sunday, CBS's "60 Minutes," drew 8.2 million total viewers.

The 13 million viewers topped the 11.7 million total viewers for the final episode of another recent cable phenomenon, "The Bible" — though "The Bible" sustained its average viewership over two hours. (It's tough to say whether "Skywire Live" or "The Bible" included more mentions of Jesus — Wallenda prayed the entire way across the canyon.)

The walk itself also drew roughly half the viewers of Thursday's Game 7 of the NBA Finals, which had 26.3 million viewers.

The walk was viewed by people in 178 countries in all. 

 

 

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