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The holiday-delayed overnight ratings are in for the May 28 episode of SmackDown, and they’re not pretty.
In addition to it being the start of a three-day weekend here in the U.S., there are other reasons why last Fridays show was always going to struggle. It went head-to-head with the hockey and basketball playoffs again, including with a Boston Celtics/Brooklyn Nets game on ABC that was watched by 2.3 million people, and drew a .6 rating among 18 - 49 year olds.
Still, SmackDown drawing just 1.76 million and .4 in the demo - both down from last week, and a new low for the year in viewership - stings no matter what the excuses. That rating did put WWE and FOX in a tie for second on the night, behind basketball but ahead of reruns of CBS’s usual scripted fare.
And if you’re wondering how AEW Dynamite did on TNT after SmackDown? We’ll know tomorrow when the cable ratings come out.
For complete results and the live blog for SmackDown this week click here. To read a review of the night’s events click here. For a full playlist of the show click here.
Numbers via TV Series Finale