Ratings: Matt James’ ‘Bachelor’ Debut Sets New Lows for a Season Premiere

Matt James’ “The Bachelor” bow set new lows for a season premiere, but ABC still won Monday easily among adults 18-49. Also debuting new Craig Ferguson game show “The Hustler,” ABC settled for second place among total viewers. CBS had the most overall eyeballs last night. Also of note, Univision bested Fox in the key ratings demo.

ABC was first in ratings with a 1.0 rating/6 share in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic and second in total viewers with an average of 4 million, according to preliminary numbers. “The Bachelor” from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. averaged a 1.3/8 and 5 million viewers. The previous series lows for a season premiere came two years ago, when Colton Underwood’s season started off with a 1.5 rating and 5.1 million total viewers. Last year’s “Bachelor” season featuring Peter Weber premiered to a 1.9 and 6.1 million total viewers. “The Hustler” at 10 p.m. had a 0.5/3 and 2 million viewers.

CBS and NBC tied for second in ratings, both with a 0.6. CBS had a 4 share, NBC had a 3. CBS was first in total viewers with 5.3 million, NBC was third with 2.9 million.

For CBS, “The Neighborhood” at 8 p.m. had a 0.7/4 and 6 million viewers. At 8:30 p.m., “Bob Hearts Abishola” got a 0.6/4 and 5.4 million viewers. “All Rise” at 9 p.m. received a 0.5/3 and 4.6 million viewers. “Bull” closed out primetime at 10 p.m. with a 0.5/4 and 5.5 million viewers. For NBC, “Ellen’s Game of Games” at 8 p.m. had a 0.6/4 and 3.3 million viewers. A second episode at 9 p.m. got a 0.5/3 and 2.8 million viewers. At 10, the season premiere of “The Wall” p.m. received a 0.5/3 and 2.5 million viewers.

Univision was fourth in ratings with a 0.4/2 and in viewers with 1.34 million.

Fox and Telemundo tied for fifth in ratings, both with a 0.3/2. Fox was fifth in total viewers with 1.32 million, Telemundo was sixth with 971,000.

For Fox, the “L.A.’s Finest” season finale at 8 p.m. had a 0.3/2 and 1.4 million viewers. A rerun followed.

The CW was seventh in ratings with a 0.1/1 and in viewers with 656,000, airing all repeats.