Cancellation Watch: Ratings results and status updates for the sci fi and fantasy shows on the broadcast networks, cable channels, and streaming services as well as breaking news on the currently airing, returning, and upcoming genre entries. For the streaming ratings, see our weekly Digital Ratings posts.
Linear Ratings Results of Interest:
On Sunday, HBO’s The Last of Us saw its linear ratings improve slightly to a 0.19 score based on same-day viewing for the 18-49 demographic with 633K total viewers. And according to HBO, the total viewers for the night including digital viewing and encore runs came up to 5.7 million, a notable 22% increase from last week’s premiere. This shows continues to do well for HBO and a renewal looks likely as I discuss in the Status Updates section below.
Over on AMC on Sunday, Mayfair Witches slipped notably to a 0.06 rating in the demo with 562K total viewers. That is a 45% drop from last week’s linear numbers, but this show is making up the slack with digital viewing on AMC+ and should be on track for a second-season renewal.
On Monday, Fantasy Island slipped back to a 0.19 rating with 1.7 million total viewers. Those numbers are pretty low and I will be moving this one to Bubble status which I discuss further in the Status Updates section below. The other shows on the broadcast networks were still on hiatus or in repeats this past week.
You can see the full, season-to-date ratings for the sci fi and fantasy shows at this link, and below are the ratings for the genre shows from the past week. Ratings Source: ShowBuzzDaily
Ratings Results for the Week of 1/16/23
| Series | Rating / Tot Viewers |
| Fantasy Island (FOX) Mon 8 PM | Rtg: 0.19 ↓ / Tot Vwrs: 1.6M, Status: On the Bubble |
| Quantum Leap (NBC) Mon 10 PM (Repeat) | Repeat, Status: Renewed |
| The Winchesters (CW) Tue 8 PM | On Hiatus, Status: On the Bubble |
| La Brea (NBC) Tue 9 PM | On Hiatus, Status: Renewal Possible |
| Kung Fu (CW) Wed 9 PM | On Hiatus, Status: On the Bubble |
| Ghosts (CBS) Thu 8:30 PM (Repeat) | Repeat, Status: Renewed |
| The Last of Us (HBO) Sun 9 PM | Rtg: 0.19 ↑ / Tot Vwrs: 633K, Status: Renewal Likely |
| Mayfair Witches (AMC) Sun 9 PM | Rtg: 0.06 ↓ / Tot Vwrs: 562K, Status: Renewal Likely |
Status Updates:
Trending Toward Cancellation:
Fantasy Island (FOX, On the Bubble): The ratings for this show have never been very strong, even in its first season, and it currently ranks among the least-watched shows on its network. To make matters worse, FOX seems to be doing very little to promote it, and the network shuffled its second season premiere around the schedule several times. The show is allegedly less expensive to produce and maybe that will keep it alive, but I am not too confident in its future are this point and I am moving it to Bubble status.
Trending Toward Renewal:
The Last of Us (HBO, Renewal Likely): This show has turned into something which is rare for cable television these days: a certified hit. Of course, it had to rely on digital viewing to help it get there, but it has definitely built up an impressive audience early in its run. It has also received very good buzz from both critics and viewers. A second-season renewal looks like a sure thing at this point and I expect that announcement to come at any time.
You can see the status of all the airing, returning, and upcoming sci fi and fantasy shows for the current season at our Cancellation Watch page.
Digital Ratings:
Nielsen is back to its hi-jinks of not updating the Streaming Rankings on its website on a regular basis (and the Sunday linear numbers have been running late the last few weeks as well). The only genre entry that made it on the charts the week of December 19th to 25th was Wednesday which dropped to the Number 2 slot with 1.8 billion minutes watched. Hopefully, they will get back on track with the timing for these numbers this week.
The Netflix charts were pretty slow as far as genre entries are concerned for the week of January 9th to 15th with only three shows tracked. In the Top 10 for English Language shows, Wednesday (Renewed) held at Number 3 with 58 million hours watched. The eleventh season of The Walking Dead entered the Top 10 as it became available on Netflix that week. It was at the Number 9 slot with 18 million hours viewed. In the Non-English Language chart, Alchemy of Souls (Renewal Possible) slipped one slot to Number 7 with 15 million hours viewed. Following are all the sci fi and fantasy TV shows on the Netflix charts for the week (the number in parenthesis is the prior week rank):
Netflix Top 10 for the Week of Jan-9 to Jan-15
English Language Shows
3 (3) Wednesday 57.8 Million Hours, Weeks in the Chart: 8
9 (n/a) The Walking Dead: Season 11 17.9 Million Hours, Weeks in the Chart: 1
Non-English Language Shows
7 (6) Alchemy of Souls: Part 2 15.0 Million Hours, Weeks in the Chart: 5
Source: Netflix
Cancellation/Renewal Score:
We have received confirmation that Outlander Season 7 will air this Summer and that it has been renewed for an eighth (and final) season, so that puts one more in the renewal column. But Peacock’s axing of Vampire Academy puts one in the Cancellation column, so they offset. Fantasy Island has been moved to Bubble status, so that is one more trending in the direction of cancellation. Below is the current Cancellation/Renewal Score for the 2022-23 season, and you can keep up with this throughout the week at our Cancellation Watch Page.
| Show Count | 63 | ||
| Cancelled | 10 | 15.9% | |
| Ending | 10 | 15.9% | 31.7% |
| On the Bubble | 9 | 14.3% | |
| Renewal Possible | 15 | 23.8% | |
| Renewed | 19 | 30.2% |
CancelledSciFi.com: Keep up with the status updates of all the airing, returning, and upcoming sci fi and fantasy shows for the current season with our Cancellation Watch posts. And be sure to follow the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site for breaking news and updates.
SciFiTVSite.com: Follow our Sci Fi TV Schedule for all the currently airing and upcoming sci fi and fantasy television shows, and you can see the premieres for all the upcoming genre entries at this link.
