Constantine Premiere Draws 4.3 Million Viewers

The 1.4 is less than The Flash or Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. debuted with this year (a 1.8 and 1.6, respectively), but the overall viewership numbers are almost exactly even with what S.H.I.E.L.D. had in its first week (at least by overnight numbers; the numbers rose significantly in live +3 and live +7 numbers that came later, as seems likely with Constantine given the audience crossover and buzz).

Of course, S.H.I.E.L.D.‘s numbers were a series low until they were adjusted up, so while that show is considered a success, perhaps matching its premiere isn’t what NBC was hoping for with their new series. Constantine retained about 80% of its lead-in from Grimm, which is less than Dracula did last year. While that series was ultimately scrapped at the end of the year, it’s worth noting that its cancellation was likely less about ratings than about trouble with its star. It also sunk to a 1.1 rating in its midseason premiere, meaning that at least in terms of audience share, Constantine is an improvement over its predecessor’s last “big” outing.

With fairly solid word-of-mouth (its Rotten Tomatoes score is 83% among viewers, 20% higher than it is with critics) and the World Series set to end by Wednesday at the latest, next week’s numbers could prove as telling as the premiere’s in terms of the series’ future.

Note: Dracula‘s numbers were altered to reflect a midseason break and return, rather than two seasons; our initial report was based on a misreading of data. The numbers remain the same.