The Walking Dead Season 2 Premiere Breaks Records

Zombies in a scene from The Walking Dead
Zombies in a scene from 'The Walking Dead' - Photo Credit: Gene Page/AMC
The October 16, 2011 premiere of The Walking Dead season 2 is one for the record books. The season two premiere broke a 10 year old record for a single drama telecast on basic cable, posting a 36% increase over season one’s average viewership in the Adults 18-49 age range and a 38% increase in Adults 25-54.
 
Key Nielsen highlights for the season two premiere of The Walking Dead [Courtesy of AMC]:
 
– 9pm airing: 4.8 HH rating with 7.3 million viewers a 36%/38% increase respectively over last year’s season average
– 9pm airing: Adults 18-49 delivered 4.8 million viewers; a 36% increase over last year’s season average
– 9pm airing: Adults 25-54 delivered 4.2 million viewers; a 35% increase over last year’s average.
– 9 pm, 10:30pm and 12:30am airings: – cumed to 11 million viewers
 
The first season of Walking Dead averaged 3.5 million Adults 18-49 which made it the “most watched drama series in basic cable history for the demo,” according to AMC. Overall, the season averaged 5.2 million viewers.
 
The Walking Dead is one of those rare television programs that reaches both a core genre fan as well as broad audiences simply looking for a great, character-based story. We’re so proud of and grateful for the amazing team on both sides of the camera who works so hard and is so committed to making this a unique programming event,” stated Charlie Collier, AMC’s president, in the press release. “That The Walking Dead is now the most watched drama in the history of basic cable is staggering, just like our zombies.”
 
Source: AMC – October 17, 2011