ABC's 'S.H.I.E.L.D.' Up for 2nd Week to Tie its Top Rating of 2015 in Adults 18-49

During the week of April 13, 2015, ABC ran a strong second in Adults 18-49 (1.4/5) to CBS, beating out NBC and Fox by 27% each (both tied at 1.1/4). Showing strong competitive momentum, the Net has now finished No. 1 or No. 2 in the key young adult sales demo on 10 of the past 12 weeks - starting with the final week in January. The Net also took second with Total Viewers (6.1 million) and was No. 1 with Women 18-34 (1.3/5-tie).
 
ABC built week to week in Total Viewers (+7% - 6.1 million vs. 5.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (+8% - 1.4/5 vs. 1.3/4).

Rankings: ABC delivered 5 of the Top 15 TV programs in Adults 18-49, including the No. 1 broadcast drama with "Scandal:" "Scandal" - No. 6, "DWTS" and "The Goldbergs" tied at No. 7, "Grey's Anatomy" - No. 11, "The Middle" - No. 14, "The Goldbergs SP-4/15" - No. 16 and "Modern Family" - No. 19. ABC's "20/20" on Friday was the week's No. 1 newsmagazine in Adults 18-49 (tie). For the 5th week running in Total Viewers, ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" was TV's most-watched unscripted series, while landing among the Top 5 programs overall. Please Note: "Modern Family" was once again in repeat on Wednesday.

Monday
Featuring "Disney Night" on "Dancing with the Stars" and an encore "Castle," ABC was Monday's most-watched TV network for the 4th time in 5 weeks (11.3 million), while tying CBS' original schedule in Adults 18-49 (1.8/5) and beating Fox's original schedule by 38% in young adults ("Gotham"/"The Following" = 1.3/4).  "DWTS" ranked as the night's most-watched TV show overall (13.6 million) and was the No. 2 show in Adults 18-49 (2.2/7). The ABC unscripted show was Monday's top series for the 5th week running in Total Viewers.

"Dancing with the Stars" (8:00-10:01 p.m. - 13.9 million and 2.2/7 in AD18-49):
From 8:00-10:01 p.m., ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" topped NBC's "The Voice" by a season-best 2.9 million viewers (13.9 million vs. 11.0 million) and placed a solid No. 2 in the 2-hour slot with young adults (2.2/7) to deliver its closest Adult 18-49 finish this season with the NBC show.  Against "Dancing," "The Voice" hit another season low in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49.  "Dancing" was up week to week in Adults 18-49 (+10% - 2.2/7 vs. 2.0/6) to hit a season best.  In addition with "Disney Night," "DWTS" also hit season highs with Adults 18-34 (tie), Women 18-34, Women 18-49 and Kids 2-11.

For the 3rd consecutive week, "DWTS" grew over its comparable telecast last season/fall (12.7 million and 2.0/6 on 10/13/14) in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49.

"Castle-R" (10:01-11:00 p.m. - 6.0 million and 1.0/3 in AD18-49):
During the 10:00 p.m. hour, ABC's repeat "Castle" took second over NBC's "The Voice"-led "Night Shift" by 9% in Total Viewers (6.0 million vs. 5.5 million).  It fact, it was the ABC drama's most-watched repeat this season.  

Tuesday
"Fresh Off the Boat" (8:00-8:30 p.m. - 4.8 million and 1.5/5 in AD18-49): 
At 8:00 p.m. opposite NBC's "The Voice" and CBS' top-rated "NCIS," ABC rookie "Fresh Off the Boat" beat out Fox's "Hell's Kitchen" for its 6th consecutive original telecast in both Total Viewers (4.8 million vs. 3.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (1.5/5 vs. 1.3/5). The ABC comedy grew for the 2nd week in Adults 18-49 (+7%) to hit a 5-week high - since 3/10/15.

Despite its 8:00 p.m. time period without a network lead-in, ABC's "Fresh Off the Boat" tied NBC's "The Voice"-driven "Undateable" as Tuesday's No. 1 comedy in Adults 18-49. In fact, "Fresh Off the Boat" ranked as Tuesday's No. 1 comedy on each of its last 9 original airings on the night in the Live + 3 Day ratings.

"Repeat After Me" (8:30-9:00 p.m. - 3.1 million and 1.0/3 in AD18-49): 
At 8:30 p.m., ABC's "Repeat After Me" returned up 11% in Adults 18-49 (1.0/3 vs. 0.9/3) after the prior week's preemption.

"Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." (9:00-10:00 p.m. - 4.0 million and 1.6/5 in AD18-49):
Surging 60% from its lead-in at 9:00 p.m., ABC's "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." was up for the 2nd week in Adults 18-49 (+7% - 1.6/5 vs. 1.5/5) to match its best number of 2015. In addition, the show won the hour and spiked 50% with Men 18-34 to deliver its highest rating since October - since 10/28/14.  "S.H.I.E.L.D." was right on the heels of CBS' "NCIS: New Orleans" for the Adult 18-49 L+SD lead in the hour (1.6/5 vs. 1.8/6) and with playback is projected to move ahead of the CBS drama in the L3 and L7 data.   

On average season to date, "S.H.I.E.L.D." is improving its time period by 40% in Adults 18-49 (2.8/8 vs. 2.0/5) over the comparable weeks last season.

"Jimmy Kimmel Live: The Avengers Assembled-R" (10:00-11:00 p.m. - 2.5 million and 0.9/3 in AD18-49):
During the 10:00 p.m. hour, ABC's replay "Jimmy Kimmel Live: The Avengers Assembled" (originally aired the prior evening in late-night, on Monday, 4/13/15) shot up 50% in Adults 18-49 from the year-ago primetime "Kimmel" encore special (0.9/3 vs. 0.6/2 for "Behind the Scandalabra" on 4/24/14) and tied NBC's "Chicago Fire" repeat in the slot.

Wednesday
With "Modern Family" in repeat for the 2nd week in a row and a special airing of "The Goldbergs" at 9:30 p.m., ABC nearly tied CBS' original lineup (tied in share) and beat Fox's Wednesday prime with a 2-hour "American Idol" by 21% in Adults 18-49 (1.7/6 vs. 1.4/5).

"The Middle" (8:00-8:30 p.m. - 7.5 million and 2.0/8 in AD18-49): 
At 8:00 p.m. against "Survivor," "The Middle" outdelivered Fox's "Idol" for the 4th week running in the half-hour by a best-yet 54% among Adults 18-49 (2.0/8 vs. 1.3/5). The ABC comedy gained viewers (+3%) and built for the 2nd week in a row with young adults (+5%) to a 6-week high - since 3/4/15. 

Season to date, "The Middle" is up in Total Viewers (+2%) and Adults 18-49 (+4%).

"The Goldbergs" (8:30-9:00 p.m. - 6.9 million and 2.2/8 in AD18-49): 
Building on its Adult 18-49 lead-in at 8:30 p.m. (+10%), "The Goldbergs" outdelivered "Idol" for its 5th straight original (+57% - 2.2/8 vs. 1.4/5). "The Goldbergs" was up week to week in Total Viewers (+6%) and Adults 18-49 (+10%), hitting a 6-week high on the latter measure - since 3/4/15. 

Season to date, the ABC sophomore comedy continues to trend well ahead of its year-ago benchmarks in Adults 18-49, growing its half-hour year to year by 50% and surging over its own performance last year on Tuesday at 9:00 p.m. by 23%. 

"Modern Family-R" (9:00-9:30 p.m. - 5.9 million and 1.8/6 in AD18-49): 
At 9:00 p.m., ABC's repeat "Modern Family" defeated Fox's "Idol" in the half hour for the 2nd week in a row with Adults 18-49 (+20% - 1.8/6 vs. 1.5/5). Gaining week to week, "Modern Family" delivered its top repeat number this season in Adults 18-49.

"The Goldbergs-SP" (9:30-10:00 p.m. - 5.7 million and 1.9/6 in AD18-49): 
Building on its "Modern Family" lead-in among Adults 18-49 in the 9:30 p.m. slot (+6%), ABC's special airing of "The Goldbergs" ran a strong second to "Criminal Minds" (1.9/6 vs. 2.1/7), while beating the final half-hour of "Idol" by 27% (1.5/5).

"The Goldbergs" was up sharply in the half-hour year to year (3.7 million and 1.2/4 for "Mixology" on 4/16/14), improving the time slot by more than 50% in Total Viewers (+54%) and Adults 18-49 (+58%). 

"Nashville" (10:00-11:00 p.m. - 4.6 million and 1.2/4 in AD18-49): 
During the 10 o'clock hour, ABC's "Nashville" grew 9% week to week in Adults 18-49 (1.2/4 vs. 1.1/4). 

In the Live + 3 Day data for last Wednesday, "Nashville" was the biggest percentage gainer among all broadcast shows on the night with Adults 18-49, spiking +64% over its L+SD rating (building to a 1.8 from a 1.1 rating) to tie the show's 2nd-largest increase this season. The ABC drama also gained another +2.0 million Total Viewers after 3 days of TV playback, increasing its tally to 6.6 million viewers (from 4.6 million in L+SD).

Thursday
ABC ran a strong second on Thursday in Adults 18-49 to CBS (1.9/6 vs. 2.1/7), more than doubling Fox with an original drama lineup (+111% - 0.9/3). 

ABC's "Scandal" (2.4/8) and "Grey's Anatomy" (2.1/8) were Thursday's Top 2 dramas in Adults 18-49, while "Scandal" returned from the prior week's preemption as the night's No. 2 TV show, behind only CBS' "The Big Bang Theory." In addition, "Scandal" and "Grey's" tied as Thursday's No. 1 TV show with Women 18-34, outdelivering "Big Bang Theory."

"Grey's Anatomy" (8:00-9:00 p.m. - 7.6 million and 2.1/8 in AD18-49): 
At 8:00 p.m. against CBS' "The Big Bang Theory" and "The Odd Couple," ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" dominated its drama competition in the hour, beating Fox's "Bones" by 55% in Total Viewers (7.6 million vs. 4.9 million) and by 110% in  Adults 18-49 (2.1/8 vs. 1.0/4).

"Grey's" was up by double digits from its last original in the time period two weeks ago in Total Viewers (+14%) and Adults 18-49 (+11%).  The ABC drama was steady with the prior week's special telecast in the 9:00 p.m. hour.

"Scandal" (9:00-10:01 p.m. - 7.9 million and 2.4/8 in AD18-49):
Building on its lead-in at 9:00 p.m. (+14%), ABC's "Scandal" returned to win its slot in Adults 18-49 (2.4/8), leading by double digits over runner-up CBS' comedies (+20% - 2.0/7) and by strong triple digits over Fox's "Backstrom" (+200% - 0.8/2). 

"Scandal" gained 8% in viewers and 14% in young adults over its last telecast to deliver its best numbers in 4 weeks - since 3/19/15.
 
"American Crime" (10:01-11:00 p.m. - 4.4 million and 1.1/4 in AD18-49): 
At 10:00 p.m., ABC freshman "American Crime" spiked by 22% week to week in Adults 18-49 (1.1/4 vs. 0.9/3) and ranked No. 1 among the broadcasters in the hour with Adults 18-34 and key Women (W18-34/W18-49).   

The ABC freshman drama is seeing increasing TV playback. In the Live + 3 Day ratings for last week's telecast, "American Crime" jumped by a series-best +56% in Adults 18-49 from its L+SD rating (from a 0.9 rating to a 1.4 rating in L+3) and added on another +1.5 million viewers to its next-day tally (4.4 million to 5.9 million in L+3).

Friday
ABC Friday Prime (8:00-11:00 p.m. - 5.9 million and 1.2/5 in AD18-49):  ABC won Friday for the 2nd week in a row among Adults 18-49 (1.2/5), beating its closest competition by 33% (0.9/4 - CBS and NBC tied). The Net also delivered the night's Top 3 TV shows for the 2nd straight Friday with "Shark Tank" (1.5/6), "20/20" (1.2/4) and "Last Man Standing" (1.1/5 - also the top scripted show). ABC's "20/20" ranked as Friday's No. 1 newsmagazine, leading NBC's "Dateline" head to head in Total Viewers (+8%), Adults 18-49 (+20%) and Adults 25-54 (+7%). ABC was also Friday's most-watched TV network overall, with a 5% advantage over 2nd-place CBS (5.9 million vs. 5.6 million).

Please Note: Overall Adult 18-49 TV Usage Levels dropped -8% in the 8 o'clock hour week to week (22.8 vs. 24.7) and were down -4% during Friday's primetime (25.5 vs. 26.7).

"Last Man Standing" (8:00-8:31 p.m. - 6.2 million and 1.1/5 in AD18-49):  At 8:00 p.m., ABC's season finale of "Last Man Standing" ranked No. 1 in the half-hour in Adults 18-49 (tie) for the 2nd week in a row and was on par with its week-ago telecast despite the sharp drop in viewing levels (1.1/5 vs. 1.2/5).  "LMS" was the most-watched TV show overall (6.2 million) in its half-hour for its 6th straight first-run telecast.  

"Cristela" (8:31-9:00 p.m. - 4.8 million and 0.9/4 in AD18-49):
At 8:30 p.m., ABC's "Cristela" season ender was on par week to week against the backdrop of declining viewing levels (0.9/4 vs. 1.0/4). The freshman ABC comedy tied for No. 1 in the half-hour with Adults 18-34.
 
"Shark Tank" (9:00-10:01 p.m. - 6.5 million and 1.5/6 in AD18-49):
Jumping over its lead-in among Adults 18-49 at 9:00 p.m. (+67%), ABC's "Shark Tank" led its hour by 50% over the second hour of CBS' 2-hour "The Amazing Race: (1.5/6 vs. 1.0/4). The ABC unscripted series held even week to week with young adults. "Shark Tank" was the most-watched TV show overall in the hour (6.5 million).
 
"20/20" (10:01-11:00 p.m. - 5.7 million and 1.2/4 in AD18-49):
At 10:00 p.m., ABC's "20/20" won its hour for the 2nd week running with Adults 18-49 (1.2/4) and Adults 25-54 (1.6/5).

Saturday
With back-to-back telecasts of "20/20-Saturday" leading into a repeat "Castle" at 10:00 p.m., ABC was the most-watched network on Saturday (4.6 million), outdrawing NBC with coverage of the Stanley Cup playoffs (2.2 million) by 2.4 million Total Viewers. ABC attracted its largest non-sports audience on the night in 1 year - since 4/19/14.

"20/20-Saturday SP 2-4/18" (9:00-10:00 p.m. - 5.9 million and 1.0/4 in AD18-49):
ABC's 9:00 p.m. telecast of "20/20-Saturday" drew the show's biggest-ever audience (5.9 million) and matched series highs in Adults 25-54 (1.5/5) and Adults 18-49 (1.0/4). "20/20-Saturday" was the night's No. 1 program in the key Adult 25-54 news demo.

Sunday
Opposite CBS' "ACM Awards" coverage on the night, ABC took second among the broadcasters on Sunday in Adults 18-49 (1.4/4), beating Fox by 27% (1.1/3) and NBC by 75% (0.8/2). Despite the increased competition, ABC was up week to week by 17% in Adults 18-49 as each of its Sunday series grew.

"America's Funniest Home Videos" (7:00-8:00 p.m. - 6.4 million and 1.4/5 in AD18-49): 
In the 7 o'clock hour, ABC's "America's Funniest Home Videos" took first place among the broadcast nets in young adults (1.4/5) and built week to week in Total Viewers (+16% - 6.4 million vs. 5.5 million) and Adults 18-49 (+27% - 1.4/5 vs. 1.1/4).

"Once Upon a Time" (8:00-9:00 p.m. - 5.1 million and 1.7/5 in AD18-49):  
Building on its lead-in at 8:00 p.m. (+21%), ABC's "Once Upon a Time" ranked No. 1 against its regular competition in its slot for its 7th consecutive original telecast in Adults 18-49 (1.7/5). The ABC drama was up 6% week to week in Adults 18-49. 
"Secrets and Lies" (9:00-10:01 p.m. - 5.1 million and 1.5/4 in AD18-49): 
At 9:00 p.m., ABC's "Secrets and Lies" was up in Total Viewers (+6% - 5.1 million vs. 4.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (+15% - 1.5/4 vs. 1.3/4), tying a series high with young adults. From 9:00-10:00 p.m., ABC's "Secrets and Lies" moved ahead of NBC's "A.D." for the first time in the Live + Same Day ratings (after beating it last week for the first time in L3), leading by 25% in Adults 18-49 (1.5/4 vs. 1.2/3).
 
Based on Live + 3 Day data for last Sunday's telecast (4/12/15), ABC's "Secrets and Lies" shot up +62% or +0.8 rating points over its L+SD Adult 18-49 rating, matching the series' biggest jump yet. The 6th episode of the new ABC drama grew to a 2.1 L+3 rating (from a 1.3 in L+SD) in Adults 18-49, coming within 1-tenth of a rating point of a series high in the L+3 numbers.

"Revenge" (10:01-11:00 p.m. - 3.9 million and 1.0/3 in AD18-49):  
At 10:00 p.m., ABC's "Revenge" doubled its NBC drama competition in the hour with Adults 18-49 (+100% - 1.0/3 vs. 0.5/2 for "American Odyssey"). "Revenge" grew week to week in Total Viewers (+3% - 3.9 million vs. 3.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (+11% - 1.0/3 vs. 0.9/3).

WEEK NO. 30: ADULTS 18-49 TOTAL VIEWERS
No.1 CBS 1.8 No.1 CBS 9,630,000
No.2 ABC 1.4 No.2 ABC 6,090,000
No.3 FOX 1.1 No.3 NBC 5,040,000
No.3 NBC 1.1 No.4 FOX 3,590,000
No.5 CW 0.6 No.5 CW 1,630,000

Source: The Nielsen Company, National Live+ Same Day Program Ratings for week of 04/13/15.

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