“Will & Grace” is coming back next fall, and NBC has 14.651 million reasons for making the reunion a reality.
We know, pretty specific. But that’s the exact number of total viewers each episode of “Will & Grace” received, on average, from 1998-2006. Today, those Nielsen numbers would rank a series among the top shows on TV. That said, today is not 2002.
The eight-season sitcom started solidly with its pre-turn-of-the-century launch, but the series fully ballooned to huge TV ratings with a fateful move to Thursdays in Season 3. Of course, it didn’t at all hurt that NBC paired it with “Friends” for those next few years. It did hurt, however, when Ross, Rachel, Monica, Chandler, Joey and Phoebe said farewell.
Yes, this post is about “Will & Grace,” but as an aside, here’s how powerful “Friends” was: “Will & Grace” jumped 52 percent in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic from 1999-2000 to 2000-2001, when it began airing an hour after “Friends.” In total viewers, the leap was a little lower, at a still-gigantic 47 percent.
And when “Friends” finally signed off for good, “Will & Grace” moved 30-minutes earlier and dropped 36 percent in the main demo, 31 percent among overall audience members. The show would slide another 22 percent and 17 percent, respectively, the following season. That would be “Will & Grace’s” final run — until now.
Below is “Will & Grace’s” full TV ratings track through the years. Don’t expect these averages over the upcoming 10-episode revival — but Bob Greenblatt & Co. will take anything even close.
