After struggling this fall with ratings, Fox Network made their big comeback, with Wednesday night’s hip-hop drama “Empire,” starring Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson.
According to Fox, “Empire” opened big, building on its “American Idol” lead-in, landing 9.8 million viewers and a 3.7 rating among adults ages 18-49 during the one-hour premiere, making it Fox’s highest-rated series debut in three years; since 2012’s “Touch.”
Overall, the music industry drama dominated its time period and ruled as the night’s No. 1 show in key demos. In fact, the rookie drew just as many young viewers as ABC’s “How to Get Away With Murder,” the season’s biggest new hit, for its premiere in September.
Meanwhile, “American Idol” was down again during its 14th season kickoff, landing 10.9 million viewers and a 3.1 rating — down 34 percent (close to a third of its young-adult audience) since just last year. Those numbers represent a series low for a premiere episode of the franchise.
Until now, Fox has had difficulty launching new hits. Although “Gotham” has been relatively stable, its big reality experiment “Utopia” was a dud, as were freshman dramas the “Red Band Society” and murder-mystery “Gracepoint.”
With ratings already low for “Empire’s” “Idol” lead-in, we’re hoping it can keep its momentum. Will you be watching?
