‘The Last Dance’ Finishes With An Average Of 5.6 Million Viewers

The Last Dance has made its mark on TV history.

The 10-part documentary finished strong for its finale, with episodes 9 & 10 averaging 5.6 million viewers across ESPN and ESPN2. Episode 9 (9-10 p.m.) averaged 5.9 million viewers, up 10 percent from last Sunday, becoming the third most watched episode of the series, trailing the record-breaking audiences of episodes 1 and 3. Episode 10 (10-11 p.m.) averaged 5.4 million viewers, up 9.8 percent from last week’s episode 8, which aired in the same time slot.

The original airings of all ten episodes of the series also averaged 5.6 million viewers within the same day, cementing The Last Dance as the most-watched documentary content ever on ESPN. The series started strong on April 19th, with episodes 1 & 2 averaging 6.1 million viewers, becoming the two most-viewed original content broadcasts on ESPN Networks since 2004. Subsequent weeks continued the momentum, with Episodes 3 & 4 averaging 5.9 million viewers, episodes 5 & 6 averaging 5.5 million viewers, and episodes 7 & 8 averaging 5.1 million viewers, all of which have become the most watched documentary content on ESPN, surpassing 2012’s “You Don’t Know Bo” (3.6 million).

“We are thrilled with the response from fans throughout the run of the series,” said Connor Schell, Executive Vice President, Content at ESPN. “The past five Sunday nights have brought fans together providing the type of communal viewing experience traditionally reserved for live sports. The exceptional content of the series has cut through culturally and sparked conversations far beyond ESPN platforms. We are grateful to Jason and his creative team and all of our production partners on the film and look forward to seeing fans continue to engage with ‘The Last Dance’ in the days and weeks ahead through the ESPN app.”

“The Last Dance” Original Airings

Episode

Viewership*

Episode 1 (4/19, 9pm) 6,340,000

Episode 2 (4/19, 10pm) 5,792,000

Episode 3 (4/26, 9pm) 6,143,000

Episode 4 (4/26, 10pm) 5,657,000

Episode 5 (5/3, 9pm) 5,785,000

Episode 6 (5/3, 10pm) 5,214,000

Episode 7 (5/10, 9pm) 5,344,000

Episode 8 (5/10, 10pm) 4,918,000

Episode 9 (5/17, 9pm) 5,891,000

Episode 10 (5/17, 10pm) 5,400,000

*Viewership based on initial Nielsen reporting.

Time-shifted viewing has only increased viewership across the series, including nearly 15 million viewers for episode 1. A complete report will be released this week.

The top five metered markets for episodes 9 and 10 included: Chicago (12.5 rtg.), Greensboro, N.C. (5.5 rtg.), San Diego (5.1 rtg.), San Francisco-Oak-San Jose (4.8 rtg.), and Nashville (4.7 rtg.). As expected, Chicago was the #1 market, Chicago averaged a 12.0 metered market rating across the series, including a 12.5 rating on Sunday.

“The Last Dance” on social:

“The Last Dance” was a phenomenon on social media, becoming the No. 1 trending topic on Twitter for 5 straight Sundays. It was the No. 1 most social series on a per episode basis across TV year-to-date and was also among the top 10 primetime programs across TV overall, including sports events, award shows, and other series.