“FEAR THE WALKING DEAD” DELIVERS THE HIGHEST-RATED FIRST SEASON OF ANY SERIES IN CABLE HISTORY
AMONG TOTAL VIEWERS AND ALL KEY DEMOS
“FEAR” SEASON ONE AVERAGES 11.2 MILLION VIEWERS,
7.3 MILLION ADULTS 18-49 AND
7.2 MILLION ADULTS 25-54 IN LIVE+3
AMC ANNOUNCES “TALKING DEAD” WILL FOLLOW EVERY EPISODE OF “FEAR THE WALKING DEAD” IN SEASON TWO
NEW YORK, NY – October 9, 2015 – With its season one ending last Sunday, “Fear the Walking Dead” now stands as the highest-rated initial season of any series in cable history across total viewers and all key demos in live+3 ratings, which include three days of time shifted viewing. In its first season of six episodes, “Fear the Walking Dead” averaged 11.2 million viewers, 7.3 million adults 18-49 and 7.2 million adults 25-54 in live+3, with the season one finale on October 4th delivering 10.1 million viewers, 6.5 million adults 18-49 and 6.6 million adults 25-54 in live+3.
Across all of television, broadcast or cable, “Fear the Walking Dead” ranks as the #3 freshmen scripted series debut among adults 18-49 and adults 25-54 since Nielsen began measuring live+3 viewing. In those key demos, AMC is now home to the top three cable series season debuts ever in live+3 – “Fear the Walking Dead” at #1 (2015), “The Walking Dead” at #2 (2010) and “Better Call Saul” at #3 (2015).
Season one of “Fear the Walking Dead” also drew strong TVE activity, generating more than 3.2 million TVE streams and 8.4 million VOD transactions to date. On Twitter, “Fear the Walking Dead” was the #1 series across all television on the night of October 4th, and “Fear” was also one of the most engaging programs on Facebook, ranking among the top 5 cable programs during primetime on October 4th.
AMC also announced today that “Talking Dead,” the live aftershow hosted by Chris Hardwick, will air after each of the 15 new episodes of “Fear the Walking Dead” season two in 2016. Hardwick will spend time each week with fans, actors, producers and TV enthusiasts, recapping that evening’s “Fear” episode. The “Talking Dead” special that aired after “Fear’s” October 4th season one finale delivered 2.9 million viewers, 1.8 million adults 18-49 and 2.0 million adults 25-54 in live+3 ratings.
“When we set out to launch a companion series to the #1 show on television, there were truly many things to fear, beyond ‘Fear’ itself. To see this show stand alone, break through and set records as a unique piece of storytelling is very gratifying and a tribute to great creative talent,” said Charlie Collier, president of AMC, SundanceTV and AMC Studios. “We’re grateful to Robert Kirkman, Dave Erickson, the terrific executive producers, the cast and crew for a first season that was successful on so many levels. Here’s to season two and the weekly addition of ‘Talking Dead’ led by the incomparable Chris Hardwick. Of course, biggest thanks to the fans who have joined us on the ‘Fear’ journey – first by land and, next, if Abigail is to be believed, by sea.”
“Fear the Walking Dead” Season One Performance Averages (Live+3):
11.2 million viewers
7.3 million adults 18-49
7.2 million adults 25-54
Key Nielsen Highlights for the Season One Finale of “Fear the Walking Dead” (Live+3)
10.1 million viewers, up 47% from live/same day (an increase of 3.2 million viewers)
6.5 million adults 18-49, up 53% from live/same day (an increase of 2.3 million adults 18-49)
6.6 million adults 25-54, up 54% from live/same day (an increase of 2.3 million adults 25-54)
Sources: Nielsen L+3. Ranks 2006/2007 Broadcast Season to Date exclude mini-series. BART multiplatform (TVE – ALL MVPDs); Rentrak OnDemand Essentials (VOD); Nielsen Social (Twitter, ranked based on tweets) excludes sports programming; ListenFirst DAR (FB) excludes sports & Spanish programming. Dates: 8/24-10/7/15 (TVE/VOD); 10/4/15 (Nielsen, ListenFirst).
