“Dancing With the Stars” celebrated its twentieth anniversary with a rankings bang, with its live-plus-same-day viewership totaling 6.67 million viewers, TheWrap can reveal completely. Not solely did the episode see a 6% rise over the earlier week, it additionally ranks because the ABC present’s finest efficiency for the episode earlier than the semifinals in six years.
The rankings progress comes within the midst of a carriage dispute between Disney and YouTube TV, which has made ABC and different Disney-owned programming unavailable on the service since Oct. 30. The dispute, which exhibits no indicators of resolving fairly but, has inevitably impacted rankings throughout ABC — together with “Dancing With the Stars,” whose week-over-week progress was interrupted, however continues to be up 20.6% from the season premiere.
“We’re seeing strong curiosity within the season,” ABC SVP of content material technique and scheduling Ari Goldman informed TheWrap of the ballroom dancing present’s momentum in its thirty fourth season. “We’re actually happy with what we’re seeing on the linear stations and, after all, the livestream on Disney+.”
Disney+’s livestream notably hit an all-time excessive for the present’s twentieth celebration episode, with hours streamed seeing a 65% improve from the premiere per inside knowledge. Fan voting additionally hit a brand new excessive for the sequence with 55.4 million votes, rising over the present’s earlier excessive on “Halloween Night time.”
“Dancing With the Stars” Season 34 kicked off on Sept. 16 with the strongest premiere efficiency the present has seen in 5 years with 5.53 million viewers, and grew steadily the next weeks, hitting 6.63 million viewers for “Depraved” evening — an almost 11% improve from the prior week — and 6.74 million viewers for Halloween evening, the season’s most-watched episode up to now. Viewership slid down barely the following two weeks — 6.34 million for Rock & Roll Corridor of Fame Night time and again up 6.67 million for Tuesday’s twentieth birthday celebration — doubtless because of the carriage dispute.
With two weeks left within the season, “Dancing With the Stars” is averaging 6.06 million viewers throughout ABC and Disney+, in line with viewing data by Nov. 4. That’s up 14% from final season’s common viewership of 5.3 million, which additionally marked important rankings beneficial properties for the sequence after discovering new fandom amongst Gen Z viewers by TikTok and different social media platforms.
“The momentum is simple,” Goldman added, noting that components for the increase embrace “assembly our audiences the place they’re, whether or not by the ABC associates, by the Disney+ livestream, by the wonderful social media technique on the present” in addition to this season’s robust casting. “The present is simply firing on all cylinders this season.”
Given what Goldman identifies because the “year-to-year erosion” in linear viewership — as audiences proceed to shift their viewing habits from linear to streaming — he famous it’s “nearly unparalleled” to see this stage of progress within the present TV panorama. “The truth that the present is up on the linear platforms year-to-year, in comparison with a decline for many exhibits throughout the board, and up dramatically on streaming has been music to our ears. You’re not seeing this sort of a year-to-year linear story exterior of ABC Tuesday,” he mentioned, noting the success of the Katilin Olson-led procedural “Excessive Potential.”
Season 34 options contestants like TikTok star Alix Earle, social media sensation Robert Irwin and never one however two “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” stars, who’re serving to convey youthful viewers again to linear TV by “Dancing With the Stars.” Goldman famous that whereas the present was amongst its oldest-skewing on ABC a decade in the past, it’s now the second youngest present on linear. For its Disney+ livestream, the median age is round 28.
“We’ve actually discovered this potential to reinvigorate the present by the distribution technique,” Goldman mentioned, pointing to Disney+, which was the only house for the present in 2023 earlier than shifting to each ABC and Disney+ for the final two seasons.
As for the breakdown between ABC and Disney+, Goldman famous that the “overwhelming majority” of total viewing stays on ABC. However there’s a “very robust composition” coming from Disney+ amongst adults between the ages of 18-49, particularly within the 18-34 demo.
Throughout Tuesday’s episode, former host Tom Bergeron — who returned for one evening solely as a particular visitor decide — made a plea to ABC given the season’s rankings success to convey again the outcomes present, referring to the two-episode per week format that was retired again in 2013, when the present started airing one two-hour telecast weekly. Whereas Goldman mentioned nothing is ever off the desk, he famous the weekly telecast creates a possibility for appointment TV viewing that has created beneficial properties for the present whereas different linear actuality programming struggles from declining rankings.
“What I feel has made sense for us with ‘Dancing with the Stars’ has been focusing our efforts on as soon as every week, every year, making this actually really feel like an occasion that viewers should create appointment-viewing round,” he mentioned. “We’ve been actually making an attempt to make this as large an occasion as potential every week.”
With the finale simply across the nook on Nov. 25, Goldman famous he’s “bullish” on what viewership may appear to be for the season nearer as households collect earlier than Thanksgiving. “All indicators are pointing towards an enormous story in a pair weeks,” he mentioned.
In different rankings information…
NBC Information scores largest weekly viewers since February
With some viewers are missing entry to ABC Information amid the Disney-YouTube TV carriage dispute, they may have switched the channel to NBC Information for its night wrap-up program, which ended the week of Nov. 3 with 6.67 million complete viewers, its largest viewers since February, and 929,000 viewers within the 25-54 demo.
“Nightly Information” completed the week because the No. 1 night newscast in each the adults 25-54 and adults 18-49 , marking its largest benefit over “ABC World Information Tonight” in over a 12 months. In reality, “Nightly Information” outpaced “World Information Tonight” from Tuesday-Friday within the 25-54 demo.
Michelle Obama boosts “Sherri” to season-high score
Former First Girl Michelle Obama’s first look on “Sherri” boosted the Nov. 6 episode to a season-high score of 560,000 viewers, TheWrap can reveal completely. The episode additionally scored 105,000 viewers amongst ladies 25-54 — up 34% over the earlier week and 20% when in comparison with the identical day final 12 months. “Sherri” closed out October with a 5.24% share of the daytime viewers behind solely “Kelly & Mark” with 8.32%.
Choose Judy’s “Scorching Bench” scores rankings wins
Contemporary off successful its first Daytime Emmy for excellent authorized/courtroom program, “Scorching Bench” ranks because the No. 1 courtroom present nonetheless in unique manufacturing with a median viewership of two.24 million complete viewers this season. After getting added runs on OWN and Dabl, “Scorching Bench” ranks as syndication’s fastest-growing courtroom present, up by 10% in houses, 12% amongst complete viewers, 35% amongst ladies 18-49, 25% amongst ladies 25-54, 16% amongst adults 18-49 and 15% amongst adults 25-54. The present lately scored its largest viewership in 93 weeks with a median 2.40 million views for the week of Oct. 20.
“It’s already been a rare season for ‘Scorching Bench,’” EP David Theodosopoulos mentioned in a press release. “Our judges and manufacturing crew convey authenticity, power, and coronary heart to each case, and it’s extremely rewarding to see that mirrored within the present’s continued momentum — from our loyal viewers to our first Daytime Emmy win final month.”
