NBC’s supernatural series Grimm–which has been performing well for a Friday series for two seasons now–got some promising news this last week when the network announced that they will move the show to the coveted 10 PM EST post-The Voice timeslot on Tuesdays beginning on April 30th. Grimm (which was preempted this last Friday for news coverage) has performed consistently well on Friday nights since debuting there in October of 2011, averaging typically around a 1.5 rating in the 18-49 demographic; good numbers for that low viewership night. But now, with underperforming new reality series Ready for Love getting pulled from the schedule, the network has decided to move Grimm into the slot following ratings juggernaut The Voice where it can potentially build on its audience. It will remain there through its season finale with no word yet on whether it will return to Fridays for its third season (which has not been official announced, but you can count on it). It will definitely be some good promotion for this sophomore series and it could help expand the cult following the show has attracted. But I have to wonder why they didn’t move new series Hannibal there instead. That one currently resides in the brutal Thursday 10 PM EST timeslot and it has actually performed halfway decent there, but it could use any sort of scheduling love that the network would throw its way. In fact, Hannibal actually slipped notably to a 1.4 rating in the 18-49 demographic this last week with 3.5 million total viewers. So its early gains could be wiped out if it now starts to descend into a death spiral. But if that one got moved to the Tuesday timeslot, the strong lead-in could keep it afloat through the rest of its freshman season. Then next season, pair it up with similarly horror-themed Grimm on Fridays where that show has already developed a steady following. I guess the network is rewarding Grimm for having done well this far, but then its not in any danger now and it seems like the wiser move would be to prop up high-profile series Hannibal at this point. But then why do I try to make any sense of what the network execs do? Look at this as a vote of confidence for Grimm, but also note that this could have been a missed opportunity to keep Hannibal alive (and he’s not somebody you want to make mad . . . ).
On Thursday of last week, The CW’s Vampire Diaries returned after two weeks of repeats to match a season low of a 1.0 rating in the 18-49 demo with 2.1 million total viewers. Beauty and the Beast returned with its typically low 0.6 rating and 1.6 million total viewers. That struggling network needs to rethink its late season strategy because it seems to do these repeat blocks every year and the numbers for its shows really fall off as the season winds down. On Wednesday, Arrow and Supernatural were both in repeats with those returning to finish out there season this week. Person of Interest was in repeats on CBS last week as well.
Below are the full numbers for the week and you can read about the Sunday through Monday shows (including the strong debut of Syfy’s Defiance) in my mid-week column. (And can see my final season predictions at this link.) And keep an eye on the Cancellation Watch Twitter Site for the early returns from Sunday thru Monday shows from this week. You can see the Cancellation Alert status of all the shows currently airing plus the final results from prior seasons at my Cancellation Watch page. And for questions on how the ratings work and my Cancellation Alert statuses, you can see the Cancellation Watch FAQ.
Ratings Results for the Week of April 14:
Once Upon A Time (R) (ABC Sun 8 PM) Rating: 1.4 | Trend: Down | Cancellation Alert: Moderate
Game of Thrones (HBO Sun 9 PM) Rating: 2.4 | Trend: Up | Cancellation Alert: Renewed
The Following (FOX Mon 9 PM) Rating: 2.1 | Trend: Down | Cancellation Alert: Renewed
Defiance (Syfy Mon 9 PM) Rating: 1.0 | Trend: n/a | Cancellation Alert: Low
Bates Motel (A&E Mon 10 PM) Rating: 1.1 | Trend: Up | Cancellation Alert: Low
Revolution (NBC Mon 10 PM) Rating: Preempted | Trend: Steady | Cancellation Alert: Low
Arrow (R) (CW Wed 8 PM) Rating: 0.4 | Trend: Steady | Cancellation Alert: Renewed
Supernatural (R) (CW Wed 9 PM) Rating: 0.5 | Trend: Down | Cancellation Alert: Renewed
Vampire Diaries (CW Thu 8 PM) Rating: 1.0 | Trend: Down | Cancellation Alert: Renewed
Person of Interest (R) (CBS Thu 9 PM) Rating: 1.6 | Trend: Down | Cancellation Alert: Renewed
Beauty and the Beast (CW Thu 9 PM) Rating: 0.6 | Trend: Steady | Cancellation Alert: Medium
Hannibal (NBC Thu 10 PM) Rating: 1.4 | Trend: Down | Cancellation Alert: Moderate
Nikita (CW Fri 8 PM) Rating: Preempted | Trend: Up | Cancellation Alert: Moderate
Touch (FOX Fri 9 PM) Rating: Preempted | Trend: Up | Cancellation Alert: High
Grimm (NBC Fri 9 PM) Rating: Preempted | Trend: Up | Cancellation Alert: Low
Ratings Source: TV by the Numbers
Nielsen TV Ratings: ©2013 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.
Why Were They Cancelled?
The Plight of Science Fiction and Fantasy Television in the Face of the Unforgiving Nielsens and Networks
Ever wondered why your favorite science fiction and/or fantasy show disappeared from the television schedule, never to deliver anymore new episodes? The reason why, most likely, is that it was cancelled because its ratings were low. And this book looks at those many cancelled sci fi/fantasy shows as well as the Neilsen ratings and television networks that dictate their fates. Available now for only $2.99 on Kindle from Amazon.com.
