Andy DehnartThe first week of Dancing with the Stars 7 saw the second-most popular reality show in the country debut strong but then lost millions of viewers from night to night.
Monday, the show debuted with 21.34 million viewers and “won its timeslot from 8 to 10 p.m., though it declined by 9% in 18-49 vs. last year’s 90-minute” debut, Variety reports. Still, it helped ABC get its largest number of viewers “on the opening Monday of the season in nine years (since 1999, when ‘Monday Night Football’ was going strong).”
Tuesday night, the show was the highest-rated of the night in overall viewers and among those 18 to 49, but its ratings dropped. In the first hour, 17.87 million watched, and at 10 p.m., 18.52 watched, TV By the Numbers reports.
Wednesday night, for the standard hour-long results show, ratings dropped even further. 15.57 million people watched, down more than 5 million from Monday night. Still, it won the night among total viewers, although just barely over CSI: NY, which beat it among viewers 18 to 49, according to TV By the Numbers.