The Walking Dead - Season 3 Finale - Ratings Record Press Release

AMC’S “The Walking Dead” FINALE DELIVERS

12.4 MILLION VIEWERS AND 8.1 MILLION ADULTS 18-49

MAKING IT LARGEST AUDIENCE IN SERIES HISTORY

#1 PROGRAM ON TELEVISION FOR THE NIGHT

FOR TOTAL VIEWERS AND ADULTS 18-49

#1 PROGRAM ON TELEVISION FOR THE WEEK FOR ADULTS 18-49
#1 PROGRAM ON TELEVISION FOR THE BROADCAST SEASON

AMONG ADULTS 18-49

“TALKING DEAD” HITS ALL TIME HIGH

WITH 5.2 MILLION TOTAL VIEWERS & 3.3 MILLION ADULTS 18-49

BEATING HBO’S “GAME OF THRONES” PREMIERE

New York, NY – April 1, 2013 – Last night, AMC’s season three finale of “The Walking Dead” premiered at 9 pm, delivering its largest audience ever with 12.4 million viewers and 8.1 million adults 18-49, making the series the number one program for the night and the week for total viewers and in the demo. The series’ season average is also number one for the broadcast season for adults 18-49 for all of television outdelivering everything including “The Big Bang Theory,” “The Voice,” “Game of Thrones,” “Modern Family,” and almost doubling “The Bible.” With Live plus 3, “The Walking Dead” typically, adds, at least an additional 3 million viewers.

“Two words: Grateful. Dead. It’s a joy that we get to work with such tremendous talent to make ‘The Walking Dead’ and ‘Talking Dead’ come to life for audiences that continue to engage and grow,” said Charlie Collier, AMC’s president. “In just three seasons, ‘The Walking Dead’ has become a pop-culture phenomenon, entertaining millions of passionate viewers and obliterating traditional lines between cable and broadcast television.”

BROADCAST SEASON TO DATE (9/24/13-3/28/13)
Network Program A18-49 US RTG % A18-49 (000)

AMC Walking Dead thru 3/31/13 5.6 7027
CBS Big Bang Theory, THE 5.4 6787
NBC VOICE 4.4 5562
FOX American Idol-WEDNESDAY 4.4 5550
ABC Modern Family 4.4 5533
HIST BIBLE, THE thru 3/31/13 2.9 3608
HBO GAME OF THRONES 3/31/13 2.4 3019

* excluding sports and specials.

Following the 9 pm premiere of “The Walking Dead,” AMC premiered the finale of “Talking Dead” at 10 pm to the most watched episode in series history with 5.2 million viewers tuning in to the live show. The audience of “Talking Dead” out delivered HBO’s premiere of “Game of Thrones” for the night. Hosted by Chris Hardwick, “Talking Dead” features Hardwick and fans, actors, producers and other TV enthusiasts, discussing and dissecting that night’s “Dead” premiere. The series expanded to a full hour with the final 8 episodes of season three. The finale episode featured guests including Norman Reedus, Chad Coleman and Yvette Nicole Brown.

Key Nielsen Highlights for the season three finale of “The Walking Dead”:

9 pm airing – 7.4 HH rating with 12.4 million viewers; a +28%/+38% increase respectively over last year’s season 2 finale
9 pm airing - Adults 18-49 delivered 8.1 million viewers; a +36% increase over last year’s season 2 finale
9 pm airing - Adults 25-54 delivered 7.0 million viewers; a +31% increase over last year’s season 2 finale


Key Nielsen Highlights for the season two finale of “Talking Dead”:

o 10 pm: 3.1 HH rating with 5.2 million viewers, +15%/+20% vs. season 1 finale
o 10 pm: 3.3 million Adults 18-49, +12% vs. last year’s season 1 finale
o 10 pm: 2.9 million Adults 25-54, +9% vs. last year’s season 1 finale

Source: Nielsen. Live+SD. 3/31/13 TWD 9p-10:05p, TD 10:05p-11:05p. (Week of 3/25/13-3/28/13) (Season to Date 9/24/12-3/28/13). M-Sa 8p-11p/Su 7p-11p. Broadcast & Cable Trackage excludes sports & specials A18-49 (000). Qual. avail upon request.

On Sunday, social media for the season finale of “The Walking Dead” ranked 1ST among all television programs for the day. “Talking Dead” ranked 8th among all television and 5th among just cable programs on Sunday.

Source: AMC