The year’s virtual Primetime Emmy Awards show, due to the pandemic, hit a historic low rating, scoring 13 percent in total viewership compared to the year prior.
The 72nd annual event, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, struggled to overcome last year’s low ratings with less than 6.1 million tuning in for the ceremony compared to just under 7 million who watched the show in 2019 on the Fox network, according to the Hollywood Reporter in a piece published Monday. (RELATED: Zendaya Becomes Youngest Woman To Win Emmy Award For Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama)
Emmys 2020 ratings: Awards viewership sinks to all-time low https://t.co/ko3XsIBjR8 pic.twitter.com/fTVLUwwJAS
— New York Post (@nypost) September 21, 2020
The time zone-adjusted Nielsen numbers for Sunday’s ABC broadcast brought in a 1.2 rating in the highly coveted demographic of adults ages 18-49, according to the Hollywood Reporter. In comparison, the 2019 awards show scored a 1.7 in the same age group, which at the time was the show’s lowest ratings in the show’s history. (RELATED: Despite Declining Ratings, 2020 Emmys Still Happening With Jimmy Kimmel As The Host)
To put that further into perspective, last night’s virtual award program was down 29 percent in the key the demographic compared the previous year.
As the piece noted, once out of home viewing numbers get factored in later in the day, the numbers might change slightly, but they aren’t expected to top 2019’s all-time low numbers.
The big winner for the night, right now, looks like the NFL showdown on NBC’s Sunday Night Football for the Seattle Seahawks victory over New England Patriots 35-30, which drew in three times as many viewers as the Emmy awards.