Ratings: 'Empire' continues to build; 'Survivor' premieres strong

By THE WRAP
Freshman Fox drama maintains its growth streak

Fox's freshman series "Empire" continued its remarkable growth streak on Wednesday night, climbing in both the key 18-49 demo and total viewers, according to preliminary numbers.

"Empire" notched a 5.3 rating/15 share in the 18-49 demographic most important to advertisers, up 2 percent from last week. In total viewers,"Empire" drew 13.8 million, a 6 percent bump from the previous week. Those numbers made it the highest-rated and most-watched program of the night, and marks the seventh consecutive week of growth since the series' premiere.

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Combined with its lead-in "American Idol," which posted a 2.6/8 with 10.2 million total viewers, "Empire" put Fox in first place for the night in both the demo and total viewers, with a 4.0/12 and 12 million, respectively.

ABC was second in the demo and fourth in total viewers with a 2.2/7 and 6.8 million. The network mostly saw improvement across its primetime slate, with the exception of "The Middle" at 8, which dipped to a 2.0/7 with 7.4 million total viewers. "The Goldbergs" at 8:30 climbed 14 percent for a 2.5/8 with 7.5 million total viewers, while "Modern Family" grew 10 percent at 9, taking a 3.4/10 with 9.3 million total viewers. "Black-ish" at 9:30 ticked up to a 2.3/6 and had 6.7 million total viewers, while "Nashville"posted a 1.4/4 and 4.9 million total viewers.

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CBS took third place in ratings and second in total viewers, averaging a 1.9/6 and 7.8 million for the night. The "Survivor" season premiere, airing from 8 to 9:30, notched a 2.3/7, and drew its largest audience since fall 2012 with 9.9 million total viewers. The season premiere of "The Amazing Race" followed, drawing even with last February's premiere with a 1.5/4 and drawing 6 million total viewers.

NBC drew fourth in ratings and third in total viewers with a 1.5/4 and 7.6 million. The good news for the network? "Mysteries of Laura" at 8 jumped 27 percent from last week, posting a 1.4/4 and attracting 7.6 million total viewers. "Law & Order: SVU" the following hour held steady with a 1.6/4 and took 7.7 million total viewers, while "Chicago P.D." at 10 dropped 12 percent to a 1.5/5 and had 7.3 million total viewers.

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Univision was fifth in ratings and total viewers, averaging a 1.1/2 and 2.3 million for the night.

The CW, taking sixth place for the night with a 0.8/2 and 2.3 million total viewers, had its good news and bad news. "Arrow" at 8 was off 17 percent from last week, posting a 1.0/3, and drawing 2.9 million total viewers. However, "The 100″ the following hour enjoyed a 20 percent boost, notching a 0.6/2 and taking in 1.8 million total viewers.

Telemundo was seventh for the night with a 0.6/2 and 1.4 million total viewers.