ABC’s drama Will Trent put up decent on-air numbers for its series premiere and scored solid gains over seven days of delayed viewing. The show’s audience has mushroomed, however, with additional time and multiplatform viewing.
Including three repeats and their attendant delayed viewing, the premiere of Will Trent has pulled in 18.1 million viewers and a 2.64 rating among adults 18-49 across all platforms over its first five weeks. That’s more than five times bigger than the on-air total for its first airing (3.61 million) and a more than sixfold increase in the 18-49 rating (from 0.38 initially).
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Leaving out the rebroadcasts, the pilot episode has 11.2 million multiplatform viewers and a 1.94 rating in the key ad demographic over 35 days. Its seven-day audience, as measured by Nielsen (and not including streaming), was 6.57 million viewers and a 0.6 rating in adults 18-49. About 41 percent of the five-week audience, and more than two-thirds of its 18-49 rating, came from streaming or over the longer time period.
The network’s other Tuesday shows, The Rookie and spinoff The Rookie: Feds, also had big gains for their January debuts as part of a revamped slate on the night. The Rookie’s Jan. 3 episode grew from about 4.7 million to 11 million viewers over 35 days on all platforms, and Feds rose from 3.8 million to 8.4 million viewers. Both shows more than tripled their initial 18-49 ratings: 0.64 to 2.48 for The Rookie and 0.44 to 1.51 for Feds.
“We’re so thankful to the creative teams and brilliant casts of The Rookie, The Rookie: Feds and Will Trent for delivering standout characters and stories that audiences want to welcome into their homes,” said Craig Erwich, president ABC Entertainment, Hulu & Disney Branded Television Streaming Originals. “The success of these shows relies heavily on our multi-platform strategy, and I’d like to acknowledge our ABC and Hulu viewers for seeking out and supporting these series.”
ABC’s revamped Tuesday has quietly been one of the success stories of midseason. After moving from Sunday nights, The Rookie’s seven-day audience has grown 14 percent over its fall average. The Rookie: Feds, meanwhile, has jumped 31 percent since being paired with its parent show. Will Trent has also built on Feds‘ performance in the 10 p.m. hour in the fall.
