Nielsen data has revealed an average of 19.5m viewers watched Sunday’s 96th Academy Awards, marking a 4% gain on 2023 for a four-year high.
In fact the number elevates the 96th Academy Awards to the highest audience for any awards show since the onset of the pandemic in 2020.
The Oscars that year took place prior to the lockdowns and drew 23.6m viewers and fell to an all-time low of 10.4m in and intimate telecast in late April 2021. The following year drew 16.6m, while an average of 18.8m tuned in last year.
The ceremony broadcast on ABC scored a 3.81 rating in the 18-49 demographic, a key one for advertisers, which fell against last year’s 4.0 rating.
There is no knowing for certain what caused the ratings rise, although the involvement of Universal’s best picture winner Oppenheimer, which won six other Oscars, and Warner Bros’ Barbie, which won a sole award for best song, is believed to have enticed more viewers who will have seen those films.
The earlier start time may also be a factor. The telecast started one hour earlier to ensure the show remained mostly in the primetime viewership zone and the television audience stuck with it.
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