NBC’s “You, Me and the Apocalypse” premiere placed the network in third on Thursday, when Fox topped the night with “American Idol.” It was anything but the end of the world, however, as the quirky Rob Lowe comedy managed to hand NBC its best marks for an original in the time slot since Nov. 5.
CBS finished in second place, running half reruns, half originals.
Broadcast had some extra competition from cable last night, when the latest GOP debate — this one sans Donald Trump, in case you didn’t hear — aired on Fox News. Read those metered-market ratings here.
Fox broadcast network was first in ratings with a 2.3 rating/8 share in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic and in total viewers with an average of 8.8 million, according to preliminary numbers. “Idol,” the only show on Fox’s primetime schedule, earned those marks.
CBS was second in ratings with a 1.5/5 and in viewers with 7.3 million. Following repeats, “Angel From Hell” at 9:30 p.m. ET had a 1.4/4 and 6.7 million viewers. “Elementary” at 10 got a 1.1/4 and 6.1 million viewers.
NBC was third in ratings with a 1.4/5 and in viewers with 6.2 million. At 8 p.m. ET, “You, Me and the Apocalypse” received a 1.2/4 and 5 million viewers. “The Blacklist” at 9 had a 1.6/5 and 7.1 million viewers. “Shades of Blue” at 10 got a 1.3/5 and 6.5 million viewers.
ABC and the CW tied for fourth in ratings, both with a 0.8/3. ABC was fourth in total viewers with 2.7 million; the CW was fifth with 2.3 million.
For ABC, 8 o’clock’s “Beyond the Tank” had a 1.1/4 and 4 million viewers. At 9, the finale of “My Diet Is Better Than Yours” got a 0.7/2 and 2.1 million viewers.
For the CW, “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow” at 8 p.m. ET posted a 1.1/4 and 2.8 million viewers. “The 100” at 9 received a 0.6/2 and 1.7 million viewers.
Univision was sixth in ratings with a 0.7/2 and in viewers with 1.9 million.
Telemundo was seventh in ratings with a 0.6/2 and in viewers with 1.6 million.