The preliminary Thanksgiving TV ratings are in, with CBS and The CW showing mixed results. Fans of Supernatural and Arrow fear what the results could mean, while Young Sheldon fans are happy with the outcome. Meanwhile, NBC showed good results with Thursday Night Football, as expected.
Thanksgiving is usually a time when primetime networks take their shows off the air, opting for reruns instead. The CW may wish that it had chosen to do this, considering the slump its two shows took. According to Deadline, Supernatural and Arrow both saw series lows, with a 57 percent and 40 percent drop respectively. Supernatural especially had a major plot-driven episode with shocking returns, making the drop in viewing figures hurt even more.
There is hope for fans that The CW will view the episodes as holiday specials. This will mean they’re not included in the average viewership for the seasons as a whole. However, cancellations for both shows are very unlikely, considering they remain two of the strongest overall on the network.
However, CBS showed that opting for a new episode on Thanksgiving isn’t necessarily that bad. While The Big Bang Theory opted for a rerun, freshman spin-off, Young Sheldon, aired a new episode. Mom, Life in Pieces, and S.W.A.T. also aired new episodes. All four showed an increase in viewership from the week before.
CBS may have been in the better position due to the Thanksgiving game in the slot before. Fans would have already been tuned in for the L.A. Chargers win against the Dallas Cowboys.
Thursday Night Football also showed good results, although not as good as Thanksgiving 2016, This is possibly due to the current NFL viewing boycott rather than Thanksgiving. NBC did overshadowed all networks with 14.4 million total viewers tuning in for Thursday Night Football and the key demo saw a 4.2/16 rating. The network also saw the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade hold steady from the previous year. Both results were just as expected by critics, fans, and the networks.
FOX and ABC opted for reruns throughout the night. The usual Thursday night lineup for ABC is now on the winter break, returning in January. FOX will be back with new episodes of Gotham and The Orville next week, as will CBS. The CW’s Supernatural will return, but Arrow is taking a week off for a Penn & Teller special.
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