The ESPY Awards took a sizable ratings hit Wednesday night, recording the show’s lowest numbers since it moved to ABC from namesake ESPN in 2015.
The awards, hosted by Danica Patrick, delivered 3.94 million viewers and a 0.9 rating in the 18-49 demographic, down 26 percent in total viewers and 36 percent in adults 18-49 from the 2017 broadcast (5.3 million and 1.4 in the demo).
The decline put ABC in third place for the night, behind CBS and Fox, both of which averaged a 1.0 among adults 18-49.
CBS’ Big Brother led the night in adults 18-49 with a 1.4, off a tick from a week ago. TKO: Total Knock Out (0.8) and the series finale of Code Black (0.7) each slipped a tenth too.
Fox’s Masterchef and 24 Hours to Hell & Back each posted a 1.0, and both were up slightly week to week. NBC’s Reverie was steady at 0.4. The Originals declined a tenth to 0.2 on The CW.
In late night, The Tonight Show and Jimmy Kimmel Live! each posted a 0.4 in the demo in metered markets at 11:35 p.m. The Late Show was a tenth behind at 0.3 but had the top household rating (2.5).
At 12:35 a.m., Late Night and Nightline each came in at 0.3.
