AEW Dynamite surprises bring in one of its lowest demo ratings of the year

The ratings and viewership data are in for last night’s (Nov. 2) episode of AEW Dynamite.

Per Showbuzz Daily, Dynamite netted 911,000 viewers for a 0.29 rating point in the 18-49 year old demographic. Dynamite finished 3rd place in the demo rating on cable for the night, trailing only NBA related shows.

These numbers are down from last week’s 997,000 viewers and 0.32 demo rating, though AEW ranked ahead of last week’s 5th place finish.

This episode of Dynamite featured three major surprises: Jeff Jarrett’s debut, Colt Cabana’s return, and Katsuyori Shibata signing a contract for a match with Orange Cassidy. Did AEW book these surprises all on the same show to try keeping fans from changing the channel to the NBA or World Series competition?

Given that MLB’s World Series was watched by nearly 12 million people, I’d say that AEW’s approximate drop of 9% in viewers and the key demo from last week is within the range of what was expected. Even so, it’s only the second time that AEW Dynamite’s demo rating dropped under .30 on a Wednesday night in 2022. It was also AEW’s lowest average viewership on a Wednesday night since July 20.

Will Jeff Jarrett declaring war on AEW the impending return of The Elite help lead to sustained ratings growth from here? Take your best guesses in the comments below, Cagesiders.

Here’s a breakdown of AEW viewership and rating in the 18-49 demo over the last year:

• Nov. 3, 2021: 878,000 / .33
• Nov. 10: 913,000 / .35
• Nov. 17: 984,000 / .37
• Nov. 24: 898,000 / .31
• Dec. 1: 861,000 / .31
• Dec. 8: 872,000 / .33
• Dec. 15: 948,000 / .31
• Dec. 22: 1,020,000 / .37
• Dec. 29: 975,000 / .37
• Jan. 5, 2022: 1,010,000 / .43
• Jan. 12: 969,000 / .39
• Jan. 19: 1,032,000 / .44
• Jan. 26: 1,100,000 / .41
• Feb. 2: 954,000 / .35
• Feb. 9: 1,129,000 / .41
• Feb. 16: 869,000 / .31
• Feb. 23: 1,010,000 / .40
• Mar. 2: 966,000 / .35
• Mar. 9: 945,000 / .40
• Mar. 16: 993,000 / .38
• Mar. 23: 1,046,000 / .41
• Mar. 30: 979,000 / .38
• Apr. 6: 989,000 / .38
• Apr. 13: 977,000 / .37
• Apr. 20: 930,000 / .37
• Apr. 27: 921,000 / .33
• May 4: 833,000 / .32
• May 11: 840,000 / .33
• May 18: 922,000 / .33
• May 25: 929,000 / .35
• June 1: 969,000 / .40
• June 8: 939,000 / .34
• June 15: 761,000 / .28
• June 22: 878,000 / .31
• June 29: 1,023,000 / .36
• July 6: 979,000 / .36
• July 13: 942,000 / .32
• July 20: 910,000 / .32
• July 27: 976,000 / .33
• Aug. 3: 938,000 / .32
• Aug. 10: 972,000 / .33
• Aug. 17: 957,000 / .30
• Aug. 24: 1,049,000 / .34
• Aug. 31: 1,020,000 / .35
• Sept. 7: 1,035,000 / .38
• Sept. 14: 1,175,000 / .39
• Sept. 21: 1,039,000 / .35
• Sept. 28: 990,000 / .34
• Oct. 5: 1,038,000 / .33
• Oct. 12: 983,000 / .32
• Oct. 18: 752,000 / .26
• Oct. 26: 997,000 / .32
• Nov. 2: 911,000 / .29

For complete results and this week’s Dynamite live blog click here. To read a recap & review of the night’s events click here. For video highlights of the show click here.