USA's 'Law & Order: Criminal Intent' Premiere Up 43% in Viewers

USA

"Law & Order: Criminal Intent"

Will USA’s Law & Order: Criminal Intent return for an 11th round after all?

After Sunday’s ratings performance, with the Season 10 premiere drawing 5.1 million viewers -- up a whopping 43 percent versus the launch for the ninth season — speculation is growing that that just may be the case.

The New York Times, in fact, recently published a piece questioning the finality of the 10th season, noting that “not everyone believes that the show is ending.” Dick Wolf, creator of the Law & Order franchise, said on a conference call with reporters that he hoped “enough fans will come out so the powers that be reconsider their decision.” USA had announced in late November that the 10th season’s eight-episode pickup, down from the previous season’s 16-episode order, would be the veteran procedural’s last.

Criminal Intent rose across the board, seeing double-digit boosts in all key demographics compared with the Season 9 premiere, including adults 18-49 (1.88 million, up 35 percent), adults 25-54 (2.04 million, up 21 percent) and adults 18-34 (632K, up 31 percent).

Criminal Intent, which stars Vincent D’Onofrio and Kathryn Erbe, also boosted the ratings for lead-out In Plain Sight, toplined by a newly pregnant Mary McCormack.

The hourlong drama was up 1 percent in viewers, attracting 3.87 million at 10 p.m. Like Criminal Intent, In Plain Sight saw increases in the key demos (even with several networks breaking into primetime programming to break President Obama’s address on Osama bin Laden’s death): adults 18-49 (1.38 million, up 15 percent), adults 25-54 (1.49 million, up 3 percent) and adults 18-34 (500K, up 34 percent).

Email: philiana.ng@thr.com