Oscars Get a Bounce in Ratings, But...

...broadcast will still come in as 2nd-lowest, ahead of last year's show

By Newser Editors, Newser Staff

Posted Feb 25, 2019 1:02 PM CST

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Early Ratings Show an Oscar Bounce — Rami Malek, winner of the best-actor award, kisses Olivia Colman, winner of best actress, in the press room at the Oscars on Sunday at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)

Who needs a host? Preliminary TV ratings for the Oscars suggest the broadcast rebounded from last year's all-time low, reports Deadline. The 2019 show is on track to come in as the second-lowest in history, but it will at least be nearer to the 2008 show hosted by Jon Stewart—a 20.6 in early metrics, compared with 21.9. By contrast, last year's show, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, had an 18.9 in the early numbers, per the Hollywood Reporter.

Translated into real numbers, Sunday's show appears to have drawn 30 million viewers, up from 26.5 million in 2018. That would put 2008, with nearly 33 million viewers, in the third-lowest spot. This year's show came in at about 3 hours and 20 minutes, shorter than usual and down 35 minutes from last year, which may have helped. Deadline sees all of the above as a "win" for the Academy in 2019. (President Trump did not like Spike Lee's speech.)

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