NBC’s late-night lineup has delivered convincing wins for the week of April 19-23, with “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” beating CBS’s “Late Show with David Letterman” and ABC’s combination of “Nightline” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live” in all key ratings categories: adults, men and women 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54, as well as total viewers. At 12:35 a.m. ET, a week of “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” encores topped originals of CBS’s “Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson” in adults 18-49, total viewers and most other key categories.
“Tonight” won the 11:35 p.m. ET hour decisively, generating a 20 percent margin of victory over “Late Show” in adult 18-49 viewers (1.361 million vs. 1.132 million), a 23 percent advantage in total viewers and a 25 percent margin in adult 18-34 viewers.
At 12:35 a.m. ET, encore telecasts of “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” delivered bigger audiences than CBS’s original “Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson” and ABC’s mostly original “Kimmel” in the key adult 18-49 category, as well as adults, men and women 18-34; men and women 18-49; adults and women 25-54; and total viewers. Jimmy Fallon’s encores topped “Late Late Show” originals by margins of 24 percent in 18-49 viewers and 39 percent in 18-34 viewers.
To date, Jay Leno has ranked #1 in adult 18-49 rating on 37 of 40 nights versus “Late Show,” including two ties, since returning as host of “Tonight” on March 1. In total viewers, Jay has ranked #1 on 40 of 40 nights.
For the week of April 19-23, Jay’s average 1.361 million adults 18-49 outscored Letterman’s 1.132 million; in total viewers, Jay’s audience of 3.969 million persons beat Letterman’s 3.230 million; and in adults 18-34, Jay’s 530,000 out-delivered Letterman’s 424,000. At 12:35 a.m. ET, Jimmy Fallon’s 798,000 adults 18-49 for the week topped Ferguson’s 645,000; in total viewers, Jimmy’s 1.607 million defeated Ferguson’s 1.594 million; and in adults 18-34, Jimmy’s 346,000 out-delivered Ferguson’s 249,000.
WEEKLY AVERAGES
(According to in-home viewing figures from Nielsen Media Research for the week of April 19-23. Ratings reflect “live plus same day” data unless otherwise noted. Season-to-date figures are averages of “live plus seven day” data except for the two most recent weeks, which are “live plus same day.”)
ADULTS 18-49
11:35 p.m. ET
NBC “Tonight,” 1.0 rating, 4 share
CBS “Late Show,” 0.9/4
ABC “Nightline,” 0.9/4
12:05 a.m. ET
ABC “Kimmel,” 0.5/3*
12:35 a.m. ET
NBC “Late Night,” 0.6/3 (in encore telecasts)
CBS “Late Late Show,” 0.5/3
1:35 a.m. ET
NBC “Last Call,” 0.4/3 (in encore telecasts)
TOTAL VIEWERS
11:35 p.m. ET
NBC “Tonight,” 4.0 million viewers
CBS “Late Show,” 3.2 million viewers
ABC “Nightline,” 3.4 million viewers
12:05 a.m. ET
ABC “Kimmel,” 1.5 million viewers*
12:35 a.m. ET
NBC “Late Night,” 1.6 million viewers (in encore telecasts)
CBS “Late Late Show,” 1.6 million viewers
1:35 a.m. ET
NBC “Last Call,” 0.9 million viewers (in encore telecasts)
*Friday’s “Kimmel” was an encore.
SEASON TO DATE
ADULTS 18-49
11:35 p.m. ET
NBC “Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” 1.2/5
CBS “Late Show,” 1.0/4
ABC “Nightline,” 1.0/4
12:05 a.m. ET
ABC “Kimmel,” 0.5/3
12:35 a.m. ET
NBC “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” 0.6/4
CBS “Late Late Show,” 0.6/3
1:35 a.m. ET
NBC “Last Call,” 0.4/3
TOTAL VIEWERS
11:35 p.m. ET
NBC “Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” 4.5 million viewers
CBS “Late Show,” 4.0 million viewers
ABC “Nightline,” 3.8 million viewers
12:05 a.m. ET
ABC “Kimmel,” 1.7 million viewers
12:35 a.m. ET
NBC “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” 1.5 million viewers
CBS “Late Late Show,” 1.9 million viewers
1:35 a.m. ET
NBC “Last Call,” 0.8 million viewers
SELECTED CABLE RESULTS, WEEK OF APRIL 19-23
NATIONAL ADULT 18-49 RATING
Comedy Central, 11 p.m. ET, “The Daily Show,” 0.8
Comedy Central, 11:30 p.m. ET, “The Colbert Report,” 0.7
Adult Swim, 11:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. ET, 0.9
Adult Swim, 12:30-1:30 a.m. ET, 0.6
Each adult 18-49 rating point equals 1.32 million viewers
TOTAL VIEWERS
Comedy Central, 11 p.m. ET, “The Daily Show,” 1.7 million
Comedy Central, 11:30 p.m. ET, “The Colbert Report,” 1.3 million
Adult Swim, 11:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. ET, 1.9 million
Adult Swim, 12:30-1:30 a.m. ET, 1.2 million
(source: NBC)
