Fast National ratings for Thursday, May 21, 2015.
The first out-of-season primetime of the summer was predictably sluggish with a “Big Bang Theory” repeat ruling as the night's top show in all measures, followed by an “Odd Couple” repeat as CBS won in most measures.
NBC's star-studded “Red Nose Day” represented a great cause, but drew little audience attention. The show's biggest number was $21 million raised for children's charities thus far, so none of the rest of this stuff matters for it.
The night's biggest notable was a Week 2 bump for FOX's “Wayward Pines,” which was up from last week's premiere in most measures. Meanwhile, the second night of ABC's “500 Questions” didn't deliver great numbers, but it retained much of its audience from Wednesday.
Let's get to the ratings…
Among adults 18-49, CBS averaged a 1.1 rating for Thursday night, tops in the key demographic. FOX was second with a 1.0 key demo rating, topping ABC's 0.9 key demo rating and the 0.8 key demo rating for NBC. The CW averaged a 0.2 key demo rating for the night.
Overall, CBS had a little more breathing room with an estimated 5.73 million viewers and a 3.7 rating/7 share for Thursday primetime. ABC was second with a 2.6/5 and 3.88 million viewers, just ahead of the 3.82 million viewers and 2.5/4 for FOX. NBC was fourth with 3.19 million viewers and a 2.2/4, well ahead of the 688,000 viewers and 0.5/1 for The CW.
8 p.m. – CBS won the 8 p.m. hour with repeats of “The Big Bang Theory” (8 million viewers and a 1.5 key demo) and “The Odd Couple” (6.4 million and a 1.3 key demo). ABC's “500 Questions” was second with 4.72 million viewers and a 1.0 rating among adults 18-49, beating the 3.72 million viewers and 0.8 key demo rating for NBC's “Red Nose Day.” An encore of last week's “Wayward Pines” premiere averaged 3.06 million viewers and a 0.8 key demo rating for FOX. The CW trailed with 805,000 viewers and a 0.2 key demo rating for an “iZombie” repeat.
9 p.m. – CBS stayed in first overall for the 9 p.m. hour with repeats of “Mom” (5.9 million and a 1.2 key demo) and “Mike & Molly” (5.08 million and a 1.0 key demo). FOX moved up to second with 4.58 million viewers and led the hour with a 1.2 rating among adults 18-49 for “Wayward Pines.” ABC's “500 Questions” averaged 4.46 million viewers and a 1.1 key demo rating for third, leading the 3.17 million viewers and 0.8 key demo rating for NBC's “Red Nose Day.” The CW's “Vampire Diaries” repeat averaged 572,000 viewers and a 0.2 key demo rating.
10 p.m. – A repeat of “Elementary” closed CBS' overall sweep with 4.505 million viewers in the 10 p.m. hour, coming in tied for second with a 0.6 rating among adults 18-49. NBC's “Red Nose Day” was second with 2.7 million viewers and first with a 0.7 key demo rating. A “Jimmy Kimmy Live” special averaged 2.475 million viewers and a 0.6 key demo rating for NBC.
All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change.