“Yellowstone” Reaches TV Milestone With 12.1 Million Viewers For Season Five Premiere

That it was on a cable network series — rather than a major network like CBS, NBC, or ABC — makes the performance all the more impressive.

The total viewership was tied to a little trick: the show aired simultaneously on the Viacom networks CMT, TV Land, and Pop, and there were a few same-day reruns. Despite this, there were 9.4 million viewers who watched the premiere episode on Paramount alone.

“We were able to create a show that wasn’t popular but performed on its own terms,” ​​Costner said in a recent interview with The Associated Press.

“Yellowstone” is one of the most schedule-friendly shows on television right now, in part because it appeals to an older audience who is more used to watching television the traditional way, said Josef Adalian, West Coast editor of New York magazine Vulture.com.

“People want to see it and they want to see it now,” Adalian said. It also demonstrates the enduring popularity of the western as a genre, and in some ways it’s surprising that there haven’t been any imitators.

The show is overwhelmingly popular in the red states. According to Philo, a live TV streaming service, states with Republican governors — led by Texas — watch “Yellowstone” three times as often as states with Democratic governors.

No scripted series on any broadcast network this season has surpassed 8 million same-day viewers, although viewership typically increases when delayed viewing is factored in.

For example, last week’s most popular scripted show, CBS’ Young Sheldon, was watched by 7.14 million people, Nielsen said.

While Yellowstone is a huge hit for Paramount, the company is also making money for a corporate competitor. Streaming rights to previous seasons of the series are owned by Comcast’s Peacock service, as streaming outlet Paramount+ did not exist when they were up for grabs.

Of all television networks, NBC had the most prime-time viewers last week, averaging 5 million. Fox had 4.6 million, ABC had 3.9 million, CBS had 3.7 million, Univision had 1.2 million, Ion Television had 950,000 and Telemundo had 750,000.

Fox News Channel was the most popular cable network, averaging 3.15 million prime-time viewers. ESPN had 2.19 million, MSNBC had 1.66 million, Paramount had 1.58 million, and Hallmark had 1.23 million.

ABC’s World News Tonight led the evening news ratings race, averaging 8 million viewers. NBC’s Nightly News had 6.8 million and CBS Evening News had 5 million.

For the week of November 7-13, the most popular prime-time shows, their networks and viewership:

1. NFL Football: Dallas in Green Bay, Fox, 18.13 million.

2. NFL Football: LA Chargers in San Francisco, NBC, 15.84 million.

3. “NFL Pregame,” NBC, 12.37 million.

4. “Yellowstone” (8 p.m.), Paramount, 9.41 million.

5. NFL Football: Baltimore in New Orleans, ESPN, 9.36 million.

6. “Yellowstone” (9:14 p.m.), Paramount, 8.44 million.

7. Election night coverage (9 p.m. to 10 p.m.), Fox News, 7.81 million.

8. “CMA Awards”, ABC, 7.45 million.

9. Election night coverage (8pm to 9pm), Fox News, 7.27 million.

10. Election night coverage (10 p.m. to 11 p.m.), Fox News, 7.19 million.

11. “Young Sheldon,” CBS, 7.14 million.

12. “Football Night in America,” NBC, 6.83 million.

13. “60 Minutes,” CBS, 6.77 million.

14. “Ghosts,” CBS, 6.61 million.

15. “The Equalizer,” CBS, 6.45 million.

16. “Chicago Fire,” NBC, 6.14 million.

17. “Chicago Med,” NBC, 5.98 million.

18. “The Voice”, NBC, 5.87 million.

19. “NFL Pregame,” ESPN, 5.53 million.

20. “911”, Fox, 5.09 million.