By Lynn Elber, Television Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) --Powered by football and “The Voice,” NBC won a second consecutive weekly ratings contest and narrowed the gap with front-runner CBS among total viewers for the TV season so far.
For the year to date, NBC has climbed within 902,000 viewers of CBS, the narrowest gap in 15 years, according to Nielsen figures released Tuesday. Longtime leader CBS has drawn 9.9 million viewers compared to NBC’s 9 million.
Networks usually tout their showing among advertiser-favored young adults ages 18 to 49, but staying competitive among all viewers is important as broadcasters divvy up the pie with expanding cable and streaming outlets.
NBC’s Thanksgiving week winners included NFL games, the sophomore drama “This Is Us” and two helpings of talent show “The Voice.”
Viewers also sampled holiday cheer, with ABC’s “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” the highest-ranked entry with 6.68 million viewers.
For the week of Nov. 20 to 26, NBC averaged 8.6 million viewers in primetime. CBS had 6.96 million, ABC had 5.37 million, Fox had 2.96 million, Univision had 1.43 million, CW had 1.31 million, ION Television had 1.28 million and Telemundo had 1.19 million.
ESPN was the most-watched cable network, averaging 3.23 million viewers in primetime and posting cable’s No. 1 show with the NFL contest between the Seahawks and the Falcons.
Hallmark, buoyed by its slate of holiday movies, was close behind with 3.11 million, while Fox News Channel had 1.72 million.
ABC’s “World News Tonight” remained the evening news champion, averaging 8.56 million viewers. NBC’s “Nightly News” had 8.08 million and the “CBS Evening News” had 6.42 million.
Below are primetime viewership numbers compiled by Nielsen for Nov. 20-26. Listings include the week’s ranking and viewership.
1. NFL Sunday Night Football: Green Bay at Pittsburgh, NBC, 18.95 million.
2. NFL Thursday Night Football: New York at Washington, NBC, 16.91 million.
3. “Sunday Night NFL Pre-Kick,” NBC, 13.32 million.
4. “NCIS,” CBS, 12.54 million.
5. “60 Minutes,” CBS, 12.23 million.
6. “The Big Bang Theory,” CBS, 12.13 million.
7. “Thursday Night NFL Pre-Kick,” NBC, 11.44 million.
8. “Young Sheldon,” CBS, 11.43 million.
9. NFL Football: Atlanta at Seattle, ESPN, 10.82 million.
10. “Dancing With the Stars” (Monday), ABC, 10.15 million.
11. “The Good Doctor,” ABC, 9.97 million.
12. Football Night in America, NBC, 9.9 million.
13. “Thursday Night NFL Pre-Game,” NBC, 9.54 million.
14. “The Voice” (Tuesday), NBC, 9.36 million.
15. “This Is Us,” NBC 9.34 million.
16. “Dancing With the Stars (Tuesday),” ABC, 9.2 million.
17. “The Voice” (Monday), NBC, 9.15 million.
18. “Bull,” CBS, 8.99 million.
19. “The Walking Dead,” AMC, 8.28 million.
20. “NCIS: New Orleans,” CBS, 8 million.
NFL Football: Miami at Carolina, ESPN, 8.81 million.
ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Co. CBS is owned by CBS Corp. CW is a joint venture of Warner Bros. Entertainment and CBS Corp. Fox is owned by 21st Century Fox. NBC and Telemundo are owned by Comcast Corp. ION Television is owned by ION Media Networks.
Angelina Jolie To Receive Gothams Performer Tribute For “Marie”
The Gotham Film & Media Institute has announced that Academy Award®-winner Angelina Jolie will receive the Performer Tribute for her performance as Maria Callas in Pablo Larrain’s upcoming film Maria, at the 34th edition of The Gothams, taking place on Monday, December 2, at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City. The tribute will honor Jolie’s rendition of legendary opera singer Callas.
“Like the legendary figure she portrays, Angelina Jolie transcends mere performance to craft something extraordinary. Her interpretation captures both Maria Callas’ complexity as an artist and the cultural resonance that defines an icon,” said Jeffrey Sharp, executive director of The Gotham. “We are thrilled to celebrate what is truly one of Ms. Jolie’s career-defining performances in the final installment of Pablo Larrain’s magnificent trilogy.”
Maria follows Callas, one of the most iconic performers of the 20th century, as she retreats to Paris after a glamorous and tumultuous life in the public eye. The film reimagines the legendary soprano in her final days as the diva reckons with her identity and life. Written by Steven Knight, with cinematography by Ed Lachman and costumes by Massimo Cantini Parrini, Maria has Jolie joined by a star-studded cast including Alba Rohrwacher (Hungry Hearts, Happy As Lazzaro), Pierfrancesco Favino (Padrenostro, Adagio), Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Power of the Dog, Dolemite Is My Name), and Valeria Golino (For Your Love, The Beautiful Game). Marie premiered to critical acclaim at the Venice Film Festival and Jolie’s performance continues to stun audiences at the New York Film Festival, London Film Festival and the AFI Fest. Maria will be in... Read More