Ratings: CBS’ ‘Instinct’ Premiere Bests Sinking ‘American Idol’ in Viewers

NBC’s “Little Big Shots” returns solidly, “Genius Junior” doesn’t earn Mensa card

Instinct
CBS

ABC’s “American Idol” revival was singing a different tune Sunday night, compared to last week’s debut, according to Nielsen overnight data. The kickoff to “Idol”s second week fell 26 percent in viewers and 22 percent in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic, set against the series premiere of CBS’ “Instinct” and return of NBC’s “Little Big Shots.”

“Idol” took the bigger numbers in the key demo against the Alan Cumming drama’s launch, but it didn’t pull in as many eyeballs, helping pave the way for CBS to grab the win in total viewers for the night.

And while the Peacock’s return of the Steve Harvey-led kids variety show was steady with its first season’s finale, the network’s premiere of the Neil Patrick Harris-hosted “Genius Junior” didn’t fare as well.

ABC and CBS tied for first in ratings with a 1.3 rating/5 share in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic, according to preliminary numbers.

CBS was first in total viewers with 9 million. At 7 p.m., “60 Minutes” scored a 2.3/10 and 10.9 million viewers. At 8, the series premiere of “Instinct” earned a 1.2/4 and 9.5 million viewers. At 9, “NCIS: Los Angeles” had a 0.9/3 and 8.5 million viewers. At 10, “Madam Secretary” took a 0.7/3 and 7.1 million viewers.

ABC was second in viewers with 6.2 million. At 7, “America’s Funniest Home Videos” got a 0.8/4 and 5.3 million viewers. From 8-10, “American Idol” put up a 1.7/6 and 7.7 million viewers. At 10, “Deception” settled for a 0.9/3 and 4.2 million viewers.

NBC was third in ratings with a 0.9/3 and in viewers with 5.3 million. At 7, the “Little Big Shots” preview managed a 0.8/4 and 6 million viewers. At 8, the “Little Big Shots” season premiere posted a 1.1/4 and 7.5 million viewers. At 9, the series premiere of “Genius Junior” got a 1.0/3 and 5.1 million viewers. At 10, “Timeless” scored a 0.7/3 and 2.9 million viewers.

Fox was fourth in ratings with a 0.8/3 and in viewers with 1.8 million. At 7, “Bob’s Burgers” had a 0.5/2 and 1.4 million viewers. At 7:30, a second episode took a 0.7/3 and 1.7 million viewers. At 8, “The Simpsons” got a 0.8/3 and 2.1 million viewers. At 8:30, “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” posted a 0.9/3 and 1.9 million viewers. At 9, “Family Guy” received a 1.0/4 and 2.3 million viewers. At 9:30, “The Last Man on Earth” settled for a 0.7/2 and 1.6 million viewers.

Univision was fifth in ratings with a 0.5/2 and in viewers with 1.6 million.

Telemundo was sixth in ratings with a 0.3/1 and in viewers with 931,000.

The CW does not nationally program Sunday nights — yet. The youngest-skewing broadcaster plans to expand its schedule next season.

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