Conan's 2026 Oscars took a ratings flop. Why was viewership down?
Oscars viewership was down this year, dipping 9% to 17.9m viewers. That surprised me a little at first, but it appears that the other classic American pastime may have been responsible, with The World Baseball Classic scheduled against the telecast.
7.4m viewers watched the game between the United States and the Dominican Republic, eating into the audience for the Oscars.
With 17.9m viewers, the Oscars is still the highest rating of the award shows. But, as John Koblin notes in the New York Times, the decreased dominance of the show has been an opportunity to counter-program against it.
A decade or two ago, when the Oscars reliably attracted more than 30 million or 40 million viewers, media companies were reluctant to program a major sports event or TV series opposite the show. But at this point, the Super Bowl is the only event that media companies will go out of their way to avoid.
There are two more years of the Academy Awards being broadcast on television, with the show moving from the Disney-owned ABC to YouTube in 2029. It will be interesting to find out what viewership will be like on the streaming platform.
It’s worth considering how dominant YouTube is becoming. In the UK, measurement service Barb reported in January that YouTube reached 51.9m viewers, surpassing the BBC by around a million viewers.
I had considered that there may be a correlation between Oscar viewership and US satisfaction rates. After all, who wants to watch wealthy celebrities receiving awards when everyday people are dealing with increased fuel prices and other pressures putting a genuine squeeze on spending?
While there was some correlation between the two figures that could be assumed in the past, since the early 2000s it seems like the assumed issue of media fragmentation is in fact the beauty that killed the beast.
Does a 9% decline dent the likelihood of Conan O’Brien hosting the 2027 show? I’m not sure, but regardless of how successful a host might be, I do prefer seeing different hosts, preventing it from feeling too stale.
News Desk
Prime Video has renewed Cross for a third season. Read: thefutoncritic
RIP TV writer-producer Eric Overmyer. He’s best known for his work developing and running the series Bosch and as co-creator of Treme alongside David Simon. He was also a writer on shows including Homicide: Life on The Street, The Wire, and St Elsewhere. Read: Deadline
Netflix’s head of film Dan Lin insists there is no demand at Netflix for characters to repeat plots in dialogue. Read: Variety
It’s quite likely you will see Madonna in season 2 of The Studio. Read: THR
The Australian government has withdrawn its commitment to building a new production hub for multicultural broadcaster SBS in Western Sydney. Read: iF
Darren Star has sold a new romcom to Netflix, the home of his series Emily in Paris. It’ll follow a “talented but self-destructive winemaker who returns to Napa for her second chance at love, legacy and that elusive 100 point wine.” Read: THR
Former Google executive Matt Brittin is expected to be named as the BBC’s next director general within days. Read: The Guardian
UK culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, wants to grant the BBC a permanent charter to protect it from repeated “culture war” attacks. Read: The Guardian
MS NOW has just overhauled its schedule. The good news in it all is seeing Ali Velshi getting a regular night time slot as the new host of The 11th Hour. Read: THR
Jason Bateman will direct new Netflix crime thriller The Cackling of the Dodos. Sam Rockwell and Woody Harrelson will star. Read: THR
Toyota has signed a deal with the new Baywatch show to make its Tacoma vehicle the official lifeguard transport. Read: Variety
Trailer Park
This Is a Gardening Show debuts April 22.
This Is A Gardening Show is a refreshing and whimsical take on gardening, hosted by Zach Galifianakis. Rather than positioning himself as an expert, Galifianakis approaches the subject with curiosity and self-effacing humor, admitting that his goal is to learn alongside the audience. The series blends lighthearted comedy with a sincere appreciation for humans and nature. Ultimately, This Is a Gardening Show is about the joy of connecting with the earth and people.
The Chestnut Man: Hide and Seek debuts on Netflix May 7.
After a woman goes missing, the Copenhagen police hunt a stalker who taunts victims with a chilling children's rhyme.
The Law According to Lidia Poët returns for season 3 on Netflix at a date TBA.
At Home With The Furys returns April 12 on Netflix.
That’s the newsletter for the today.
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