Emmys Draw 6.9 Million Viewers, Down 32% From Last Year to a New Record Low – TheWrap

By Shivam Sharma On Sep 24, 2019

The 71st Emmy Awards drew 6.9 million total viewers last night on Fox, according to Nielsen. It got a 1.6 rating among adults 18-49.

That means the annual special shed roughly one-third of its audience (-33% in the demo and -32% overall) from last year. NBC’s turn on a Monday in 2018 established the awards show’s prior lows of a 2.4 rating in the key demo and 10.2 million viewers overall.

Fox’s red carpet pre-show averaged a 0.9 rating and 4 million viewers on Sunday.

Also Read: Ratings: ABC’s ‘$100,000 Pyramid’ and ‘To Tell the Truth’ Finales Get Lost in Emmys, NFL Clutter

Previously:
Sunday’s Emmy Awards on Fox drew a 5.8 household rating, a new record low in Nielsen’s earliest-available numbers.

The special declined 22% from last year, when the best-of-TV celebration received a 7.4 — that had set the previous all-time low. That number clearly got obliterated (in the wrong direction for Fox and the Television Academy) this year.

Last year’s Emmys aired Monday, Sept 17, 2018 on NBC, and were hosted by “SNL: Weekend Update” anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che. This year’s ceremony was host-less, and a bit of a mess.

Also Read: Emmys by the Numbers: HBO Holds Off Streaming Surge With Final Season of ‘Game of Thrones’

The 2018 Emmys didn’t go up against primetime NFL football on broadcast television like these did. Sunday’s special battled with “Sunday Night Football” on NBC (which had a 12.8 overnight rating), almost pre-guaranteeing this unfavorable outcome for the Emmys. (“Monday Night Football” on cable channel ESPN, which the Jost/Che Emmys faced, is much lower rated than “SNF” on NBC.)

It actually could have potentially been worse, but the 2019 Emmys almost surely benefited from their excellent lead-in.

Ahead of the ceremony, most of the country watched the New York Giants come back from behind to defeat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in dramatic fashion. The NFL, the No. 1 media market in the country, a rookie quarterback making his first start in Daniel Jones, and a down-to-the-wire contest offered pretty much the best start possible.

Plus, having — and rewarding — the final season of “Game of Thrones” couldn’t have hurt either.

Also Read: Emmys: The Complete Winners List

Final Emmys numbers — including total viewers — are expected to be reported later on Monday. Find the full list of winners and nominees here.

The Emmys rotate around the Big 4 broadcast nets.

The Best and Worst Moments of the 71st Emmy Awards (Photos)

With the 2019 Emmy Awards in the can, here are some of the highs and lows of this year’s awards show.

Fox
Worst: Homer Simpson Messes Up His Emmys Hosting Gig We were told the Emmys were going host-less this year… and maybe they should have. Homer was introduced as the “host” before walking out on stage and… falling through a hole in the stage. Anthony Anderson was speaking for all of us when he yelled: “What the hell was that?”

Fox
Best: Anthony Anderson’s Mom Saves the Intro Luckily, Anderson and his mom saved us from sitting through a completely forgettable opening number.

Fox
Best: Ike Baranholz and Maya Rudolph Get Lasik Eye Surgery at the Worst Time C’mon guys, just let Maya host the Emmys (and every other award show) next year.

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Worst: Thomas Lennon’s Commentary During Winner Walk-Ups Fox added Thomas Lennon to the broadcast to provide funny tidbits about the winners while they walked to the stage to give their speeches. Here’s all you need to know: Midway through, he said, “This is why people don’t do this, because it sucks!” Though we’ll give him a little credit for a solid Felicity Huffman joke.

Fox
Best: Patricia Arquette Calls for Trans Rights in Moving Tribute to Her Late Sister During her acceptance speech for Supporting Actress in a Limited Series, Arquette paid tribute to her late sister, Alexis, who died in 2016. “Trans people are still being persecuted… They’re human beings, let’s give them jobs.”

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Best: ‘When They See Us’ Star Jharrel Jerome Honors the ‘Exonerated Five’ It was a night of moving acceptance speeches, with Jerome paying tribute to the “Exonerated Five,” the new moniker given to the men once dubbed the “Central Park Five.”

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Best: Michelle Williams Thanks ‘Fosse/Verdon’ Bosses “I see this as an acknowledgement of what is possible when a woman is trusted to discern her own needs, [and] feels safe enough to voice them,” Williams said following her win for Lead Actress in a Limited Series.

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Worst: Adam Devine’s Solo Number It just didn’t add anything. We prefer his stellar work in “The Righteous Gemstones.”

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Best: Billy Porter Quotes James Baldwin as He Makes Emmy History The “Pose” star made history as the first openly gay black man to win an Emmy for lead actor in a drama series. Quoting author James Baldwin in his speech, Porter said, “It took many years of vomiting up all the filth that I had been taught about myself and halfway believed before I could walk around this earth like I had the right to be here.”

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