Early numbers are in for the 2016 Oscars, and the initial stats have the Chris Rock-hosted telecast down even more from last year's lows. The telecast ranks as the second-lowest on record with 34.3 million viewers.
Nielsen's overnight estimates had the three-and-a-half-hour-long ABC event on track for another drop with an average 23.4 rating among households in 56 of the nation's biggest TV markets. That's 6 percent decrease from 2015, making for a seven-year low in overnights.
The least-watched Oscars on record is still the 2008 show hosted by Jon Stewart. That show came in just shy of 32 million viewers.
This year's Oscars seemed poised to go either way ahead of the big night. The weeks-long controversy over the complete absence of racial of diversity in the acting nominations stood to turn many away from the telecast, with many calling for a boycott, but the question of how Rock would address "OscarsSoWhite" could have also goosed the ratings. Evidentially, it was not the latter
The most recent Oscars set a pretty mediocre bar for ratings. The 2015 telecast, hosted by Neil Patrick Harris, averaged an overnight 25.0 rating among households — off 10 percent from the previous telecast. Adjusted numbers made for even more dramatic drops, with viewership at a six-year low 37.2 million viewers. 2015 also suffered in the key demographic of adults 18-49, dropping 18 percent to a 10.8 rating.
These Oscars were much closer with younger viewers. The show averaged a nearly steady 10.4 rating among adults 18-49.
Note: Updated to reflect final Nielsen numbers.
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