Wrestling

AEW Dynamite draws its worst numbers in years, again

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AEW Dynamite

The ratings and viewership data are in for this week’s (May 15) episode of AEW Dynamite.

Per Wrestlenomics, Dynamite netted 672,000 viewers and a 0.23 rating in the 18-49 year old demographic. That was once again good enough for a 6th place finish on cable for the night in the key demo, with Dynamite only trailing NHL and NBA playoff games and coverage. These numbers are down compared to last week’s 711K and 0.24, respectively.

When Dynamite drew 683K viewers and 0.23 in the key demo a few weeks ago (on Apr. 24), I described the result as “its worst numbers in years.” The same can be said about last night’s numbers, as it brought in lower viewership than that episode and the same rating in the key demo.

You have to go back to Jan. 6, 2021, when then-President Trump incited an insurrection on the US Capitol building, to find an episode of Dynamite with lower viewership than last night. You have to go back to Oct. 23, 2021, when Dynamite was bumped to Saturday and aired opposite a WWE SmackDown replay, to find an episode of Dynamite with a lower demo rating than 0.23.

If you instead only consider Wednesday episodes of Dynamite, you have to go back to an empty venue, early pandemic era show that aired during the Wednesday Night War on June 24, 2020, to find an episode of Dynamite with a lower demo rating than 0.23.

Dynamite has now landed a 0.23 or 0.24 rating in the key demo on six of the last eight episodes, so unlike those shows in 2020 and 2021, this is now a normal result for AEW.

What other tricks does Tony Khan and his EVPs have up their sleeves to try to improve these numbers? I suppose we’ll find out in the coming weeks, starting with next week’s go-home show for the Double or Nothing pay-per-view.

Here’s a breakdown of AEW Dynamite viewership and rating in the 18-49 demo over the last year:

For complete results and this week’s Dynamite live blog click here. To read a recap & review of the night’s events click here. For video highlights of the show click here.

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