'Walking Dead' outdraws 'Sunday Night Football'
For all the billions TV networks lavish on live sports, an AMC series about the undead outdrew NBC's “Sunday Night Football” in the younger viewers advertisers target, while an FX program about sideshow freaks topped the baseball playoffs.
The season premiere of the “The Walking Dead,” AMC Networks Inc.'s zombie apocalypse series, broke its own record on Oct. 12, drawing the largest audience of any drama in cable-TV history. The show attracted 17.3 million total viewers and 11 million in the younger, 18-to-49-year-old group sought by advertisers, the network said yesterday in a statement.
More people in the younger demographic saw “The Walking Dead” than tuned in for NBC's “Sunday Night Football,” which drew 8.36 million viewers in that age group. The high ratings demonstrate original programs can be as powerful a draw for fans as live sports and potentially a better deal for advertisers. Major TV networks have committed to spending $7.4 billion a year on NFL telecasts over the next nine years, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.
“Original scripted series production in cable has grown by leaps and bounds,” Julie Piepenkotter, executive vice president of research at 21st Century Fox Inc.'s FX Networks, said in an interview.
At least two cable dramas posted record ratings in the past week. FX said the debut of “American Horror Story: Freak Show” registered the network's best ratings ever.
DVR Fans
The program, which began its fourth season on Oct. 8, attracted an audience of 10 million viewers, including 6.54 million in the younger group sought by advertisers, the network said yesterday in an e-mailed statement. Those ratings included fans who caught up over the subsequent three days using DVRs or on-demand viewing, boosting the total audience by two thirds and beating last year's premiere.
“For it to surpass last year is a testament to the power of franchise television,” Piepenkotter said.
The audience for “American Horror Story” exceeded that of any baseball playoff game to-date, many of which are carried by FX's sister channel Fox Sports 1, according to Nielsen data supplied by the networks.
The largest total audience so far for a Major League Baseball playoff game this year was the 5.92 million who watched the Oct. 10 game between Kansas City and Baltimore, according to Nielsen data from TVbythenumbers.com. The Oct. 12 NFL telecast on NBC drew a total audience of 18.1 million, according to Nielsen data supplied by the networks.
Anchor Shows
“The ‘American Horror Story' anthology has had the highest growth trajectory of any show in FX history, not to mention an unprecedented track record of success in awards recognition,” John Landgraf, chief executive officer of FX, said in the statement.
FX and AMC are also counting on their hit shows to sustain audience interest in their networks as other high-profile programs leave the air. The FX drama “Sons of Anarchy” ends its seven-season run in December. At AMC, “Breaking Bad” concluded last year and the Emmy-winning series “Mad Men” wraps up in 2015.
The fourth season of “American Horror Story” follows the members of a freak show in Jupiter, Florida, who try to keep the business alive and combat inimical forces.
FX renewed “American Horror Story” for a fifth season yesterday, while AMC renewed “The Walking Dead” for a sixth season last week. “The Walking Dead” has been primarily a commercial success. “American Horror Story” has won eight Emmy awards.
Both shows create even more value for their network because they are produced in-house. AMC produces “The Walking Dead” while 20th Century Television produces “American Horror Story.” Deals for downloads and reruns will deliver additional revenue to the parent companies.