Hollywood Breakdown
Fox's 'Empire' Continues Its Meteoric Rise
The hip-hop soap opera Empire has been a ratings savior for Fox. The show has grown in viewership numbers every week, with especially strong showings in the African American demographic. More than 17 million people tuned in to the second hour of last night's season finale.
By Kim Masters • • 3m ListenBy the end of the season finale of Fox's Empire, more than 17 million people were watching, and more than 2 million tweets had been generated on the topic of the show and the Lyon family's music empire. It's been years since a network show has seen such success. Empire has grown faster than any drama since House, which began more than a decade ago. The show features an almost entirely African American cast, and other networks are taking note that diversity can indeed do big numbers on TV. Once the final numbers are tallied, Empire will likely surpass CBS' Big Bang Theory as the most watched series of the television season in the 18-to-49 demographic, the age range advertisers love most. Now the only question is, can they keep it up in Season Two?
