CBS will give its freshman drama “Magnum P.I.” an NFL-sized boost, announcing Friday that a new episode will air after the AFC Championship Game on Jan. 20.
The Jay Hernandez-fronted reboot of the classic Tom Selleck series hasn’t been the ratings driver CBS has hoped for, averaging a 1.3 rating among adults 18-49. That’s inclusive of a week’s worth of delayed viewing, and it places the drama in the company of Fox’s “Bob’s Burgers.”
But it should get a lot of new eyeballs when it airs after one of the most-watched TV broadcasts of the year. The last time CBS had the late window for the AFC Championship Game — it alternates this each year with Fox’s NFC Championship Game coverage — it drew nearly 48 million viewers, which is second only to the Super Bowl. A special “Late Late Show” with James Corden will air that night as well, after the local news.
And speaking of the Super Bowl, Stephen Colbert, whose “Late Show” got the coveted post-Super Bowl slot the last time CBS aired the big game in 2016, is coming back for the network’s lineup following Super Bowl LIII on Feb. 3. He’ll air after the local news this time.
CBS has previously announced that “The World’s Best,” CBS’ new global talent show, has landed the coveted post-Super Bowl LIII time slot for its series premiere. Corden will host the competition, with Faith Hill, Drew Barrymore and RuPaul on as the American judges for the “AGT”-like property.
Each year, the Super Bowl is the most-watched show on television — so yeah, it provides a pretty good lead-in. Last year’s big game on NBC drew 103.4 million viewers.