“Empire” went out for its midseason break with a big bang on Wednesday, but the show’s 11.5 million total viewers weren’t enough for Fox to topple CBS’ primetime average.
Lead-in “Rosewood” managed just 5 million viewers at 8 p.m., which dragged down the network’s live + same day primetime average. Combined, the two Fox dramas fell shy of CBS among total viewers, but Fox crushed all competition in the key 18-49 demographic.
Fox was first in ratings with a 2.9 rating/9 share in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic and second in total viewers with an average of 8.3 million, according to preliminary numbers. “Rosewood” had a 1.4/5 in addition to the aforementioned viewers. In the demo, the 9 o’clock “Empire” scored a 4.4/13.
CBS and ABC tied for second in ratings, both with a 1.7/5. CBS was first in total viewers with 8.9 million; ABC was third with 5.9 million.
For CBS, “Survivor: Cambodia – Second Chance” at 8 p.m. ET earned a 2.1/7 and 9.4 million viewers. At 9, “Criminal Minds” got a 1.5/5 and 8.7 million viewers. At 10, “Code Black” received a 1.5/5 and 8.5 million viewers.
For ABC, “The Middle” at 8 p.m. posted a 2.1/7 and 7.8 million viewers. At 8:30, “The Goldbergs” had a 2.0/6 and 6.5 million viewers. “Modern Family” at 9 earned a 2.4/7 and 7.4 million viewers. “Black-ish” at 9:30 got a 1.7/5 and 5.5 million. “Nashville” at 10 received a 0.9/3 and 4.2 million viewers.
NBC was fourth in ratings with a 1.5/5 and in viewers with 5.8 million. A special “Christmas in Rockefeller Center” at 8 had a 1.5/5 and 8 million viewers. Another special, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” at 9, got a 1.4/4 and 5.1 million viewers.
The CW was fifth in ratings with a 1.1/4 and in viewers with 2.9 million. “Arrow” at 8, which was the conclusion of the “Flash”-“Arrow” crossover that kicked off on Tuesday, earned a 1.3/4 and 3.6 million viewers. “Supernatural” at 9 received a 0.9/3 and 2.1 million viewers.
Univision was sixth in ratings with a 0.8/2 and in viewers with 2.1 million.
Telemundo was seventh in ratings with a 0.7/2 and in viewers with 1.8 million.