Fast National ratings for Tuesday, May 13, 2014.
Finales for “NCIS,” “NCIS: Los Angeles” and “Person of Interest” all dominated their hours overall and also won among young viewers (with “Chicago Fire” tying for the demo lead at 10), helping CBS easily win Tuesday primetime in all measures.
Yes, that means that “NCIS” even beat “The Voice” in the 18-49 demo for the first time this season.
With CBS and NBC leading, FOX had a rough night with the “Glee” finale hitting series lows and the summer series “Riot” getting off to an atrocious start.
The CW's “Originals” had a strong finale, while “Supernatural” was also up, though the network was preempted in New York City for baseball, so the numbers are sure to come down at least somewhat.
On to the numbers…
Among adults 18-49, CBS averaged a 2.3 rating for Tuesday night, topping NBC's 2.0 rating in the key demographic. ABC was third with a 1.3 key demo rating. The CW did a 0.9 key demo rating, comfortably beating FOX's 0.6 key demo rating.
Overall, CBS romped with an estimated 14.12 million viewers and a 9.0 rating/15 share for Tuesday night. NBC was a distant second with 8.06 million viewers and a 5.0/8, comfortably ahead of the 3.82 million viewers and 2.5/4 for ABC. The CW averaged 2.1 million viewers and a 1.3/2, beating FOX's 1.1/2 and 1.62 million viewers.
8 p.m. – “NCIS” led the 8 p.m. hour with 16.765 million viewers and a 2.6 rating among adults 18-49 for CBS in its season finale. NBC's “The Voice” averaged 10.77 million viewers and a 2.5 key demo rating for second. There was a big drop to the 5.23 million viewers and 1.9 key demo rating for “Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” on ABC. The CW's “The Originals” finale averaged 2.06 million viewers and a 0.9 key demo rating though, again, that's inflated by sports preemption. On FOX, “Glee” averaged 1.92 million viewers and a 0.6 key demo rating. Ouch.
9 p.m. – The “NCIS: Los Angeles” season finale averaged 14.77 million viewers and a 2.5 rating among adults 18-49 to win the 9 p.m. hour for CBS. NBC's two episodes of “About a Boy” averaged 6.31 million viewers and a 1.6 key demo rating for second. ABC was third with the season finale of “The Goldbergs” (4.13 million and a 1.4 key demo) and the series finale of “Trophy Wife” (2.77 million and a 0.9 key demo rating). The CW's “Supernatural” averaged 2.14 million viewers and a 0.9 key demo rating, numbers that thumped the somewhat embarrassing 1.32 million viewers and 0.5 key demo rating for FOX's “Riot,” proving that comedy on a slight incline is not a big draw for American audiences.
10 p.m. – CBS' “Person of Interest” finale ruled the 10 p.m. hour with 10.83 million viewers and tied for the lead with a 1.9 rating among adults 18-49. NBC's “Chicago Fire” was second with 7.09 million viewers and tied for first with a 1.9 key demo rating (beating “PoI” in the 18-34 demo). ABC's “Celebrity Wife Swap” averaged 2.78 million viewers and a 0.9 key demo rating.
[UPDATE: Final Live+SD ratings are in and there are some adjustments to report. On the positive front, “Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” rose to 5.45 million viewers and a 2.0 rating among adults 18-49, while “The Goldbergs” ticked up to 4.26 million viewers and a 1.5 key demo rating. While both “NCIS” and “The Voice” added a few viewers, “NCIS” was flat in the key demo, while “The Voice” went up to a 2.6 rating, tying “NCIS” now. As expected, subtracting NYC baseball from The CW dropped both “The Originals” and “Supernatural” to 0.8 key demo ratings and knocked the dramas to 1.76 million viewers and 1.74 million. “Supernatural” still beat FOX's “Riot” both overall and in the key demo, but “The Originals” fell behind “Glee” (1.87 million) overall, still beating it in the demo.]
All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change.