HBO’s “Sharp Objects” landed 1.5 million viewers in the limited series’ Sunday debut. Adding in the first replay and some preliminary viewing on HBO Go and HBO Now platforms, and the Amy Adams vehicle’s premiere audience grew by 600,000 viewers, upping the grand total to 2.1 million viewers.
To add some context, that premiere sum marks the best start for an HBO original series since “Westworld” in 2016. It’s also 36 percent better than the kickoff to 2017’s “Big Little Lies.”
The limited series debut served as a lead-in for HBO’s freshman drama “Succession,” which hit a series high with 673,000 viewers just after 10 p.m. The first encore showing and early Go/Now numbers brought that total eyeballs count up to 888,000 viewers for the evening.
“Sharp Objects” is based on “Gone Girl” author Gillian Flynn’s novel of the same name, and is directed by “Big Little Lies” alum Jean-Marc Vallee. The eight episodes were written by Flynn and showrunner Marti Noxon (“Dietland,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”). Patricia Clarkson, Chris Messina, Elizabeth Perkins, Matt Craven and Sophia Lillis also star alongside Adams.
To read our interview with Noxon about how she approached the premiere’s big “aha moment” and the sensitive nature of the series’ self harm topic, head over here.
“Sharp Objects” airs Sundays at 9/8c on HBO.