THR calls The Walking Dead a ratings loser, with a catch
The Hollywood Reporter released its annual list of ratings winners and losers and The Walking Dead found itself as a winner on the loser list.
The Walking Dead finds itself in ratings limbo according to the TV Ratings Winners and Losers of 2018 from The Hollywood Reporter. Before we get too deep into the conversation, let’s call out the elephant in the room: The Walking Dead lost a lot of viewers in 2018, which encapsulates the back end of season 8 and the first half of season 9. What makes this interesting is that THR also acknowledges that The Walking Dead isn’t exactly a ratings loser.
Here is the exact quote from The Hollywood Reporter article:
"To be fair, The Walking Dead is still the top show on cable (NFL games aside) by a sizable margin. But it has also hemorrhaged viewers in the past year, falling by more than 60 percent in adults 18-49 and by more than half in viewers from season seven to season nine. It recorded all-time lows in the 18-49 demo twice during its fall run."
Based on this information from THR, The Walking Dead is both a winner and a loser.
There’s no denying that it’s not the ratings powerhouse it once was. “Hemorrhaged” is an apt way to describe the ratings now compared to a few seasons ago. But as it stands the current ratings still make it the top show on cable and that’s not something that can be ignored.
Nielson ratings have changed a lot over the years. My sister’s family is a Nielson ratings household. Five years ago they measured what she watched live. If she changed the channel, that was recorded. Now their focus has shifted to “media consumption.” They want to know what she watches live what she watches on DVR and when she watches it. That’s how they come up with Live + Same Day ratings, Live + 3 and all of the other ratings that they use to determine final numbers.
(Incidentally, this is why “ratings” today are much different than what they were ten years ago)
Season 9 thus far has been widely well-received and many viewers who left the series have returned to see what’s new. Showrunner Angela Kang has been a thoughtful steward of the show, navigating two major time jumps, the departure of Andrew Lincoln and Lauren Cohan and the death of a fan favorite character.
Next. Carol and Daryl in 9B: Expect the unexpected. dark
Time will tell if the ratings pick up again, or if this shift to the top cable show with lower ratings will be the new normal. One thing is for sure, though: So long as the show continues to hold the top spot in cable ratings, AMC isn’t letting it go any time soon.
The Walking Dead returns February 10, 2019.