ABC’s hit sitcom Roseanne ended its rebooted season the way it began, dominating as one of the top-rated scripted shows on TV after earning top scores on Tuesday night.
The finale ended with a strong 2.4 rating with a /11 share, meaning about 10.3 million viewers tuned in to watch politically charged episode which took on illegal immigration and skyrocketing healthcare costs. And these numbers will only go higher as the numbers pour in from DVR-users and delayed viewers.
While that audience ratings are a bit lower than last week’s episode, the show remained popular with the all-important 18-49 age demographic, according to The Wrap.
Indeed, Roseanne beat all comers in the demo including the season finale of the popular crime procedural NCIS. Also, for the season, Rosanne beat other popular sitcoms like Big Bang Theory and This is Us.
By comparison, CBS drama NCIS earned a 1.2 and 11.8 million viewers beating Roseanne in total numbers but not in the important 18-49 demo. The CW’s The Flash finale saw a rating of 0.8 with 2.1 million viewers, while NBC’s The Voice won a 1.5 rating with 8.7 million viewers. Fox only aired the Will Smith-starring superhero movie Hancock.
Still, even with the winning numbers for Roseanne, ABC lost the night to NBC, according to Variety. CBS came in third for the night.
Roseanne was so popular for its 10th season reboot that ABC Entertainment president Channing Dungey speculated that one in ten Americans watched the show’s premiere on one broadcasting platform or another.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.