Respectable Start for ‘SNL: Weekend Update’ on NBC

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THURSDAY, AUGUST 10, 2017

Household Rating/Share
ABC: 3.2/ 6, CBS: 3.0/ 6, NBC: 2.6/ 5, Fox: 1.7/ 3, CW: 1.0/ 2

Note: Comparisons to the year-ago evening are excluded since NBC aired the 2016 Summer Olympics.

-Ratings Breakdown:
The second (and final) part of documentary “The Story of Diana” led ABC to a rare Thursday overnight victory, with a 4.0 rating/7 share in households from 9-11 p.m. Comparably, this was right on track with the 4.2/ 8 in the overnights for part one on Wednesday, which translated into 5.43 million viewers and a 0.7 rating/3 share in adults 18-49, based on the Live + Same Day data. It also was 129 percent above the combination of “The Battle of the Network Stars” (1.9/ 3) and “The Gong Show” (1.6/ 3) one week earlier.

In premiere news, NBC’s “Saturday Night Live: Weekend Edition” opened with a very respectable 3.7/ 7 (#2) in the 9 p.m. half-hour, which was the network’s highest metered market household rating in the time period since “Chicago Med” on May 11th. It was also 28 percent above lead-in “The Wall,” which moved into the 8 p.m. hour with a second-place 2.9/ 5. Unfortunately, NBC did not get the sampling it had hoped for sitcom “Great News,” which dipped to a 1.6/ 3 (#3t) for an encore telecast at 9:30 p.m. This fall, “Great News” airs out of the return of “Will & Grace,” which has now been greenlit for two seasons.

In the battle of the original scripted dramas at 10 p.m., “The Night Shift” on NBC (#2: 2.2/ 4) bested “Zoo” on CBS (1.7/ 3) by 29 percent. But both could not compete with ABC’s aforementioned “The Story of Diana.”

Elsewhere, ABC’s “Boy Band” was lost in the 8 p.m. hour, with a 1.7/ 3. Fox’s just renewed “Love Connection” dipped to a 1.5/ 3 at 9 p.m. out of a 1.8/ 3 for also renewed lead-in “Beat Shazam.” And “Big Brother” on CBS was consistent at a 3.8/ 7 (#1) in the 9 p.m. hour. Note to Allison Grodner: Thank you for banning Josh from his obnoxious pots and pans interruptions!

What follows is the breakdown by half-hour for Thursday, August 10:

8:00 p.m.
ABC – “Boy Band”: 1.9/ 4 (#3)
CBS – “The Big Bang Theory” (R): 4.0/ 7 (#1)
NBC – “The Wall” (new time period): 2.8/ 5 (#2)
Fox – “Beat Shazam”: 1.8/ 3 (#4)
CW – “Penn & Teller: Fool Us”: 1.1/ 2 (#5)

8:30 p.m.
ABC – “Boy Band”: 1.6/ 3 (#4)
CBS – “Kevin Can Wait” (R): 2.9/ 5 (#2)
NBC – “The Wall” (new time period): 3.0/ 5 (#1)
Fox – “Beat Shazam”: 1.8/ 3 (#3)
CW – “Penn & Teller: Fool Us”: 1.1/ 2 (#5)

9:00 p.m.
ABC – “The Story of Diana” (part two): 3.5/ 6 (#3)
CBS – “Big Brother”: 3.9/ 7 (#1)
NBC – “Saturday Night Live: Weekend Update” (premiere): 3.7/ 7 (#2)
Fox – “Love Connection”: 1.5/ 3 (#4)
CW – “Whose Line is it Anyway?”: 0.9/ 2 (#5)

9:30 p.m.
ABC – “The Story of Diana” (part two): 3.9/ 7 (#1)
CBS – “Big Brother”: 3.7/ 7 (#2)
NBC – “Great News” (R): 1.6/ 3 (#3t)
Fox – “Love Connection”: 1.6/ 3 (#43t
CW – “Whose Line is it Anyway?” (R): 0.8/ 1 (#5)

10:00 p.m.
ABC – “The Story of Diana” (part two): 4.2/ 8 (#1)
CBS – “Zoo”: 1.8/ 3 (#3)
NBC – “The Night Shift”: 2.2/ 4 (#2)

10:30 p.m.
ABC – “The Story of Diana” (part two): 4.3/ 8 (#1)
CBS – “Zoo”: 1.6/ 3 (#3)
NBC – “The Night Shift”: 2.2/ 4 (#2)

Source: Nielsen Media Research