"Smash" bombed in the ratings in its first Saturday outing.
NBC's musical drama was shipped off to Saturday nights to finish Season 2 after struggling to grab an audience on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET. The Saturday, April 6 episode titled "The Surprise Party" had 1.9 million viewers and a 0.5 rating in the 18-49 demographic. The episode featured Liza Minnelli singing an original song.
A rerun of "The Voice" aired as "Smash's" lead-in at 8 p.m. ET on NBC and had 2.4 million viewers and a 0.7 rating. At 9 p.m. ET, Fox aired a rerun of "The Following" that had 1.6 million viewers and a 0.5 rating and ABC's "20/20" had 2.9 million viewers and a 0.6 rating. From 8-11 p.m. ET, CBS aired NCAA basketball that attracted 15. 9 million viewers and a 5.1 rating.
"Smash" used to pull in about 6 million viewers an episode, but when it returned for a second season, the numbers were down dramatically. What happened?
"I think trying to second guess what it is that drives viewers or ratings is kind of a fruitless endeavor because it’s its own animal," "Smash" star Debra Messing told The Huffington Post. "The television with all of the channels ... and there's just so many different elements involved in that industry so all you can do is sign on to something that you're really passionate about and bring everything you can to the table every day and then you just have to let it go and hope for the best."
"Smash" will finish its entire Season 2 run, but it looks like the series will go out with a whimper instead of a power ballad.
"Smash" airs Saturdays, 9 p.m. ET on NBC.
