‘This Is Us’ Ratings Drop To Lowest Ever Ahead Of Fall Finale
NBC television vehicle This Is Us is facing some dismal ratings in advance of its fall finale, according to Cinema Blend. The popular drama series, one which focuses on the dynamic of a family in the past — and the present — has been running to great acclaim since its debut in September of 2016. While the television series has attracted millions of viewers for both seasons thus far, it appears that the creative enterprise may be losing its full head of steam heading out of the Thanksgiving holiday.
“Six Thanksgivings,” the episode which aired this past Tuesday, November 24, sought out a new series low in overall audience members, as well as an all-time low in their key demographic. This ill-omen, with This Is Us scoring a 1.8, is mitigated at least somewhat by the fact that all other competing shows took a similar drubbing that evening. The Voice and New Amsterdam, two other NBC media properties, also underperformed that evening — although in the latter’s case, it merely drew even against expectations.
After chronicling the longstanding Tuesday night rivalry between NBC’s This Is Us and CBS procedural NCIS — a contest in which the latter continues to gain ground against the former — writer Mick Joest of Cinema Blend would go on to make a few educated guesses as to why this particular Tuesday proved so dire for media broadcasters.
Jack Bearson at your service. ? #ThisIsUs pic.twitter.com/2MACISlxmh
— This Is Us (@NBCThisisUs) November 23, 2018
“As for why This Is Us and others may have struggled, Tuesday night was the evening preceding what could be a travel day for viewers. Families traveling out of town may have been in the process of packing, or en route in vehicles that lack the ability to broadcast primetime television. This means by the time the This Is Us midseason finale arrives on November 27, the series may regain a series ratings pull of over 2.0.”
As Good Housekeeping details, fans were shocked by the announcement that next week’s episode would serve as the fall finale for the beloved series. Complete with a “super dramatic” promotion leading up to this shocking conclusion in addition to a fever-pitch of fan excitement over where the series narrative might lead next, it appears that fans are riding high expectations going into the mid-season break.
Will devoted fans of the show be able to turn around the flagging fortunes of the NBC dramatic comedy? It appears that most industry insiders have faith that This Is Us isn’t quite set to wrap up just yet — but anything can happen in the mercurial world of television.
