By David Bauder, Media Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --As it heads toward the end of another season, CBS’ “The Big Bang Theory” has regained its familiar spot at the top of the television rankings.
The CBS comedy was seen by nearly 13 million people last week, the Nielsen company said. The revived “Rosanne,” which has created a sensation since returning to the air on ABC this spring, slipped to fourth in last week’s ratings, with an audience of 10.43 million viewers last Tuesday.
CBS’ “NCIS” was the second most-popular show of the week for the first of a two-episode arc featuring actress Pauley Perrette’s exit after 15 years of playing the character Abby.
Thirteen of the week’s 20 most-watched shows were on CBS and five were on ABC. The other two were episodes of “The Voice” on NBC.
Network executives have spent the past few weeks looking at pilots to determine which new shows will hit the air next season. The networks announce their plans for the fall to advertisers next week in New York.
CBS won the week in primetime, averaging 6.7 million viewers. ABC had 4.9 million viewers, NBC had 4.5 million, Fox had 2.5 million, Univision had 1.4 million, ION Television had 1.2 million, Telemundo had 1.1 million and the CW had 1 million.
TNT was the week’s most popular cable network, averaging 3.32 million viewers in primetime. Fox News Channel had 2.3 million viewers, MSNBC had 1.71 million, ESPN had 1.33 million and USA had 1.28 million.
ABC’s “World News Tonight” topped the evening newscasts with an average of 8.9 million viewers. NBC’s “Nightly News” was second with 8.5 million and the “CBS Evening News” had 6.5 million viewers.
Below are primetime viewership numbers compiled by Nielsen for April 30-May 6. Listings include the week’s ranking and viewership.
1. “The Big Bang Theory,” CBS, 12.93 million.
2. “NCIS,” CBS, 12.36 million.
3. “Young Sheldon,” CBS, 11.67 million.
4. “Roseanne,” ABC, 10.43 million.
5. “Bull,” CBS, 10.38 million.
6. “60 Minutes,” CBS, 9.12 million.
7. “The Voice” (Monday, 8 p.m.), NBC, 8.82 million.
8. “American Idol” (Sunday), ABC, 8.65 million.
9. “Mom,” CBS, 8.63 million.
10. “Dancing With the Stars,” ABC, 8.48 million.
11. “NCIS: New Orleans,” CBS, 8.13 million.
12. “Blue Bloods,” CBS, 7.77 million.
13. “NCIS: Los Angeles, 7.71 million.
14. “Survivor,” CBS, 7.68 million.
15. “The Voice” (Tuesday), NBC, 7.64 million.
16. “Hawaii Five-0,” CBS, 7.04 million.
17. “Instinct,” CBS, 6.96 million.
18. “Grey’s Anatomy,” ABC, 6.66 million.
19. NBA Playoffs: Toronto at Cleveland, ABC, 6.35 million.
20. “Life in Pieces,” CBS, 6.25 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.
Rom-Com Mainstay Hugh Grant Shifts To The Dark Side and He’s Never Been Happier
After some difficulties connecting to a Zoom, Hugh Grant eventually opts to just phone instead.
"Sorry about that," he apologizes. "Tech hell." Grant is no lover of technology. Smart phones, for example, he calls the "devil's tinderbox."
"I think they're killing us. I hate them," he says. "I go on long holidays from them, three or four days at at time. Marvelous."
Hell, and our proximity to it, is a not unrelated topic to Grant's new film, "Heretic." In it, two young Mormon missionaries (Chloe East, Sophie Thatcher) come knocking on a door they'll soon regret visiting. They're welcomed in by Mr. Reed (Grant), an initially charming man who tests their faith in theological debate, and then, in much worse things.
After decades in romantic comedies, Grant has spent the last few years playing narcissists, weirdos and murders, often to the greatest acclaim of his career. But in "Heretic," a horror thriller from A24, Grant's turn to the dark side reaches a new extreme. The actor who once charmingly stammered in "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and who danced to the Pointer Sisters in "Love Actually" is now doing heinous things to young people in a basement.
"It was a challenge," Grant says. "I think human beings need challenges. It makes your beer taste better in the evening if you've climbed a mountain. He was just so wonderfully (expletive)-up."
"Heretic," which opens in theaters Friday, is directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, co-writers of "A Quiet Place." In Grant's hands, Mr. Reed is a divinely good baddie — a scholarly creep whose wry monologues pull from a wide range of references, including, fittingly, Radiohead's "Creep."
In an interview, Grant spoke about these and other facets of his character, his journey... Read More