By Andrew Dalton, Entertainment Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) --In a week dominated by competition shows, “America’s Got Talent” dominated the competition.
NBC’s variety showcase brought in 9.7 million viewers last week according to the Nielsen company’s ratings. The show chose the singers, comedians, dancers and beatboxers that will be on its season-ending live episodes.
That was well clear of second-place “60 Minutes” on CBS, which brought in 6.8 million viewers.
“Celebrity Family Feud” on ABC was a distant third with 4.8 million as game show revivals, reality shows, news shows and talent contests squeezed dramas and comedies almost entirely out of the top of the rankings as they have for most of the summer.
“Beverly Hills 90210” made a splash in its revival on Fox, finishing 12th with 3.84 million viewers as it brought back most of its original cast, scoring a rare high finish for a “new” show this summer.
“Blue Bloods” and “Instinct,” both on CBS, were the only other scripted shows in the Nielsen Top 20.
NBC rode “America’s Got Talent” to win the week among broadcast networks with an average of 3.3 million viewers. CBS had 3 million, ABC had 2.9 million, Fox had 1.7 million, ION Television had 1.4 million, Telemundo had 1 million, Univision had 940,000 and the CW had 690,000.
Fox News was first among cable networks with an average of 2.4 million viewers. MSNBC was a distant second with 1.5 million. HGTV had 1.2 million, TLC had 1.1 million and Hallmark Channel had 1 million.
ABC’s “World News Tonight” topped the evening newscasts with an average of 8 million viewers. The “NBC Nightly News” had 5.7 million and the “CBS Evening News” had 3.9 million.
Below are primetime viewership numbers compiled by Nielsen for Aug. 5-11. Listings include the week’s ranking and viewership.
1. “America’s Got Talent,” NBC, 9.66 million.
2. “60 Minutes,” CBS, 6.76 million.
3. “Celebrity Family Feud,” ABC, 4.78 million.
4. “The $100,000 Pyramid,” ABC, 4.67 million.
5. “American Ninja Warrior,” NBC, 4.63 million.
6. “Big Brother” (Sunday), CBS, 4.58 million.
7. “Bachelor in Paradise” (Monday), ABC, 4.38 million.
8. “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” ABC, 4.33 million.
9. “Bring the Funny,” NBC, 4.21 million.
10. “Big Brother” (Wednesday), CBS, 3.99 million.
11. “Big Brother” (Thursday), CBS, 3.9 million.
12. “Beverly Hills 90210,” Fox, 3.84 million.
13. “To Tell the Truth,” ABC, 3.81 million.
14. “Bachelor in Paradise” (Tuesday), ABC, 3.58 million.
15. “Blue Bloods,” CBS, 3.42 million.
16. “Dateline NBC” (Monday), NBC, 4.04 million.
17. “Press Your Luck,” ABC, 3.57 million.
18. “Instinct,” CBS, 3.5 million.
19. “Instinct” (10 p.m. special), CBS, 3.39 million.
20. “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” Fox News, 3.36 million.
ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Co.; CBS is a division of CBS Corp.; Fox is owned by 21st Century Fox; NBC is owned by NBC Universal.
Review: Writer-Director Coralie Fargeat’s “The Substance”
In its first two hours, "The Substance" is a well-made, entertaining movie. Writer-director Coralie Fargeat treats audiences to a heavy dose of biting social commentary on ageism and sexism in Hollywood, with a spoonful of sugar- and sparkle-doused body horror.
But the film's deliciously unhinged, blood-soaked and inevitably polarizing third act is what makes it unforgettable.
What begins as a dread-inducing but still relatively palatable sci-fi flick spirals deeper into absurdism and violence, eventually erupting — quite literally — into a full-blown monster movie. Let the viewer decide who the monster is.
Fargeat — who won best screenplay at this year's Cannes Film Festival — has been vocal about her reverence for "The Fly" director David Cronenberg, and fans of the godfather of body horror will see his unmistakable influence. But "The Substance" is also wholly unique and benefits from Fargeat's perspective, which, according to the French filmmaker, has involved extensive grappling with her own relationship to her body and society's scrutiny.
"The Substance" tells the story of Elisabeth Sparkle, a famed aerobics instructor with a televised show, played by a powerfully vulnerable Demi Moore. Sparkle is fired on her 50th birthday by a ruthless executive — a perfectly cast Dennis Quaid, who nails sleazy and gross.
Feeling rejected by a town that once loved her and despairing over her bygone star power, Sparkle learns from a handsome young nurse about a black-market drug that promises to create a "younger, more beautiful, more perfect" version of its user. Though she initially tosses the phone number in the trash, she soon fishes it out in a desperate panic and places an order.
The one rule to follow is that... Read More