The Voice returned for its fifth cycle at 8 p.m., besting the previous two premieres with a 4.9 rating among adults 18-49. Last fall’s opener, the most direct comparison, brought a 4.2 adults rating. The Blacklist parlayed those lead-in numbers into big premiere. The new drama brought in a 3.8 adults rating at 10 p.m., besting CBS rival Hostages (1.8 adults) by a considerable margin.
And we’re off! On the first night of the broadcast season, NBC’s first new drama of the fall — The Blacklist – got off to a very strong start Monday night thanks to a head-turning The Voice premiere.
The Voice, however, is the real surprise. You would think The Voice‘s premiere ratings would decline this year since every other singing competition has been trending down lately. It’s the fifth cycle of the show. Surely the novelty of NBC’s spinning-chairs version of karaoke-TV is wearing thin, right?
Nope. The two-hour Voice debut had 14.7 million and a 4.9 rating — up 17 percent from last fall. That’s the best premiere for The Voice since its post-Super Bowl episode last year (and, for those keeping score, tops the Shakira/Usher edition). Winning the Emmy for outstanding reality competition on Sunday couldn’t have hurt either. Voice and Blacklist led NBC to easily win the night in viewers and the demo.
NETWORK/SLOT/PROGRAM ADULT DEMO TOTAL VIEWERS FOX 8-9P BONES 1.9 6,659 9-10P SLEEPY HOLLOW 3.1 8,562 ABC 8-10P DANCNG-STARS 2.3 13,363 10-11P CASTLE- P 2.2 11,485 CBS 8-9P HIMYM P 3.6 9,188 9:00P 2BROKE GIRLS P 2.8 8,756 9:30P MOM P 2.5 7,923 10-11P HOSTAGES P 1.8 7,486 NBC 8-10P VOICE P 4.9 14,665 10-11P BLACKLIST P 3.8 12,616 CW 8-9P HART-DIXIE R 0.2 762 9:00P WHSE-IT 9/23 1 RS 0.2 653 9:30P WHSE-IT 9/23 2 RS 0.3 728 – EW
