Ratings down for The Orville season 2 premiere
Viewership numbers for the season 2 premiere of The Orville were down from the start of the show’s first season.
But, that doesn’t necessarily mean The Orville is doing poorly. According to Variety, The Orville started its second season with a 1.5 rating/5 share in adults 18-49 and had 5.6 million viewers in the 8 p.m. Sunday time slot (per Nielsen’s live-same-day ratings).
The numbers for Seth McFarlane’s Star Trek-eque, sci-fi space dramedy will, of course, grow once delayed viewing is factored in.
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Still, those numbers pale in comparison to where The Orville started its first season. Back in 2017, where the first episode also came on a Sunday following football, the premiere had a 2.8 rating in adults 18-49 and 8.6 million viewers.
However, despite the initial look, the numbers are actually pretty good, all things considered. It’s worth keeping in mind that the first season premiered in September of 2017, with the finale hitting in December. This year, The Orville is premiering mid-season (due to the show wanting to up the quality even more) on the day before New Year’s Eve, not the best recipe for people watching television.
And while premiering after Fox’s NFL slate is usually a great spot to be in, being there on the last week of the NFL’s regular season, where more teams and fans have checked out, it’s not quite as special.
Looking at where this episode landed compared to 2017’s December season finale, it’s up an impressive 67% in rating for adults 18-49 and 56% in total viewers. It also comes in solidly above the 2017 season average in rating (1.5 in adults 18-49).
This week, The Orville moves back to its normal Thursday night, 9 p.m. Eastern, time slot.
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How did this season’s premiere compare to last season? Is The Orville off to a strong start? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.