TNT’s “The Last Ship” sailed to the top of the ratings rankings for a cable series debut this season: the drama landed 5.3 million viewers in its first run on Sunday, 7.4 million total including an encore.
Following the 9 p.m. premiere, the “Falling Skies” return earned 3.7 million viewers at 10 p.m.
See video: Michael Bay’s ‘The Last Ship’ Is the Last Hope for Humanity in New TNT Trailer
The two shows join “Major Crimes” and “Murder in the First” in giving the network five of cable’s top six scripted season premieres for the year to date in live plus same day delivery, the network boasted. The only non-TNT debut in the top six is A&E’s “Longmire.”
“Just two weeks into its summer slate, TNT’s Sunday night action-adventures and Monday and Tuesday night crime dramas are delivering on the promise of our newly energized brand,” said Michael Wright, president, head of programming for TNT, TBS and Turner Classic Movies (TCM). “We couldn’t be happier with last night’s launch of ‘The Last Ship’ and ‘Falling Skies,’ which come to TNT from two of the industry’s most successful storytellers: Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg.”
