Late-Night Ratings: Hillary-Colbert Loses to Drew Barrymore-Puppies

A high-profile appearance from Democrat presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton could not save the Late Show with Stephen Colbert from finishing second in the ratings to Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show, where actress Drew Barrymore was covered in a mountain of puppies and Fallon announced a new Universal Studios theme-park ride based on his show.

According to preliminary stats from Deadline, Clinton’s Tuesday night Colbert appearance garnered a household 2.5/6 rating behind Fallon’s 2.7/7 in metered markets. In the key 18-49 demo, Colbert drew a 0.6/3 rating while Fallon earned a 0.9/4 in 25 markets featuring Nielsen’s Local People Meters tracking. ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live lagged behind both, with a preliminary 1.6/4 in metered markets.

Tuesday night’s Tonight Show saw Barrymore face off against Fallon in a “pup quiz,” where the two attempted to answer dog-related questions in a bid to see who could have the most puppies placed on top of them. By the end of the segment, both Barrymore and Fallon were covered in adorable puppies.

Fallon also announced that a new ride would be constructed in his honor at Universal Studios in 2017.

Over at Colbert’s Tonight Show, Clinton discussed her favorite televisions shows (House of Cards, The Good Wife, Madam Secretary) and responded to the late-night host’s suggestion that a Clinton presidency would signal a return to the 90s, and consequently, parachute pants.

“I’m not running for my husband’s third term,” Clinton told Colbert. “I’m not running for President Obama’s third term. I’m running for my first term. But I’m going to do what works, and we have an understanding of what works.”

“The wealthy need to pay more. I’m just sorry to break it to you,” she added.

Tuesday night’s Late Show numbers couldn’t compare with Clinton’s appearance on Fallon’s Tonight Show in September, which came on the same night as the CNN Republican debate. That appearance reportedly gave Fallon his best Wednesday showing in seven months, with a strong 3.2/8 rating against Colbert’s 2.2/6.