‘Big Brother 18’ Ratings: Eviction Episode Draws More Viewers Than President Obama Town Hall


Big Brother 18 ratings have been pretty good for CBS this summer. In fact, the July 14 episode drew more viewers than a televised town hall hosted by President Obama. A report from the Hollywood Reporter states that while a repeat episode of The Big Bang Theory drew the most viewers (7.2 million) it was the eviction episode of Big Brother 18 that won in the key demographic. For viewers aged 18-49, the latest episode had a 1.9 rating, nearly double what ABC brought in for The President and the People (1.0).

The summer 2016 ratings for Big Brother 18 have once again proven that the show has a strong following. A report from TV by the Numbers states that an estimated 6.18 million viewers tuned in to see Bronte D’Acquisto get evicted from the BB18 house. That ties Episode 11 with the second-most viewers that have tuned in this season. The June 22 season premiere still leads the way with an estimated 6.31 million viewers.

This marks the 10th time in 11 episodes that the Big Brother 18 ratings have been good enough to win the time slot. It’s also the eighth time that the show has brought in the most viewers (on any network) for the night. Those are huge numbers for a reality competition show, revealing that even with the choice to bring back four veteran cast members, the producers have a winner on their hands again. Can the BB18 house continue to present interesting storylines for viewers to keep the show at No. 1?

CBS is airing Big Brother 18 three times a week, with episodes at 8 p.m. PT/ET on Sunday’s, 8 p.m. PT/ET on Wednesday’s, and 9 p.m. PT/ET on Thursday’s. This coming week, CBS and producers are adding a fourth episode to the schedule, potentially bringing in some viewers on a Friday night. The special episode is on July 22, and it will show the Battle Back competition getting played by the first five evicted houseguests. It could add another level of intrigue to the show, possibly causing another boost in the Big Brother 18 ratings.

As previously reported by The Inquisitr, though the ratings for summer 2016 are very good, there were more estimated viewers who tuned in to watch Big Brother 17. Sunday nights drew an estimated average of 6.10 million viewers, Wednesday night Veto episodes were at 6.32 million viewers, and Thursday night eviction episodes drew an estimated average of 6.09 million viewers. That was also a bit of a dip from the Big Brother 16 ratings, but still enough to rank BB17 among the most-watched shows of summer 2015.

The most watched season of Big Brother came during its debut, when an estimated 9.10 million viewers tuned in to watch 70 episodes. It was very clear from that point, that CBS had a hit on its hands. The show has been going strong since then, ranking among the top 10 for summer shows with nearly every installment. Between six and eight million estimated viewers have tuned in for every season since 2005, which is also why it has been easy for CBS to renew the show each summer. The impressive Big Brother 18 ratings likely dictate that the show could be around for a while longer.

There are still quite a few BB18 episodes left this summer. There are 12 houseguests left in the house and after the next eviction, a former houseguest will get to re-enter the game. With an advertised length of 100 days in the BB18 house this year, it gives a lot of additional time for drama to build up on the live feeds. What will be interesting to see, though, is if the viewers will continue watching in droves if the season is void of any further controversy. Producers are also going to be watching the Big Brother 18 ratings for the Friday episode (June 22) to see if it’s something that could be done again.

[Photo by CBS Big Brother/Twitter]

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