Wednesday Overnights: ‘The 2019 ESPYs’ on ABC Flat Year-to-Year

Wednesday, July 10, 2019

Household Rating/Share
ABC: 3.1/ 6, CBS and Fox: 2.1/ 4 each, NBC: 1.9/ 4, CW: 0.7/ 1

Percent Change From Year-Ago Wednesday with “The ESPYS” (Wednesday 7/18/18):
CW: +40, NBC: + 6, ABC: no change, Fox: -12, CBS: -32

Ratings Breakdown:
“The 2019 ESPYS” on ABC topped the evening, with a 3.1 rating/6 share in the household overnights. Comparably, this was equal to the year-ago telecast (which translated into 3.9 million viewers and a 0.9 rating in adults 18-49).

In night two news, “Love Island” on CBS matched its anemic Tuesday night opener, with a 1.9/ 4 in the 8 p.m. hour. And that household overnight rating on Tuesday translated to just 3.15 million viewers and a 0.6 rating in adults 18-49 (for the 90-minute telecast).

With weaker lead-in support, “Big Brother” on CBS at 9 p.m. (#2: 2.7/ 5) dropped by a hefty 27 percent from the 3.7/ 7 on the year-ago evening (in the Wednesday 8 p.m. hour). Chances of “Big Brother” moving back into the Wednesday 8 p.m. hour by next week are highly probably.

Elsewhere, Fox’s pairing of “Masterchef” (#2t: 2.5/ 5 at 8 p.m.) and “First Responders Live” (#3: 1.8/ 3 at 9 p.m.), drama “The InBetween” on NBC (#2: 1.8/ 4) and “Jane the “Virgin” on The CW (#5: 0.6/ 1 at 9 p.m.) were the only other original options last night. The remainder of the evening was repeats as follows:

8:00 p.m.
ABC – “The 2019 ESPYs”: 3.5/ 7 (#1)
CBS – “Love Island” (time period premiere): 2.1/ 4 (#4)
NBC – “Ellen’s Game of Games” (R): 2.5/ 5 (#2t)
Fox – “MasterChef”: 2.5/ 5 (#2t)
CW – “Penn & Teller: Fool Us” (R): 0.8/ 2 (#5)

8:30 p.m.
ABC – “The 2019 ESPYs”: 3.0/ 6 (#1)
CBS – “Love Island” (time period premiere): 1.7/ 3 (#4)
NBC – “Ellen’s Game of Games” (R): 2.5/ 5 (#2t)
Fox – “MasterChef”: 2.5/ 5 (#2t)
CW – “Penn & Teller: Fool Us” (R): 0.8/ 1 (#5)

9:00 p.m.
ABC – “The 2019 ESPYs”: 3.2. 6 (#1)
CBS – “Big Brother” (time period return): 2.7/ 5 (#2)
NBC – “Songland” (R): 1.6/ 3 (#4)
Fox – “First Responders Live”: 1.8/ 3 (#3)
CW – “Jane the Virgin”: 0.6/ 1 (#5)

9:30 p.m.
ABC – “The 2019 ESPYs”: 3.2/ 6 (#1)
CBS – “Big Brother” (time period return): 2.7/ 5 (#2)
NBC – “Songland” (R): 1.4/ 3 (#4)
Fox – “First Responders Live”: 1.7/ 3 (#3)
CW – “Jane the Virgin”: 0.6/ 1 (#5)

10:00 p.m.
ABC – “The 2019 ESPYs”: 3.0/ 6 (#1)
CBS – “S.W.A.T.” (R): 1.5/ 3 (#3)
NBC – “The InBetween”: 1.8/ 4 (#2)

10:30 p.m.
ABC – “The 2019 ESPYs”: 3.0/ 6 (#1)
CBS – “S.W.A.T.” (R): 1.7/ 3 (#3)
NBC – “The InBetween”: 1.8/ 4 (#2)

Source: Nielsen Media Research