6.3 Million Viewers on ABC

“Jimmy Kimmel Live” made a triumphant return to the airwaves on Tuesday night, drawing in a record-breaking 6.3 million viewers for its regularly scheduled episode. This marks the most-watched episode in the show’s history, with only two other instances where the audience reached similar heights during special Sunday episodes following the 2006 Super Bowl and the 2014 Oscars. The impressive numbers on Tuesday also signify a remarkable 343% increase from the previous season’s average of 1.4 million viewers.

The preliminary Live + Same Day data from Nielsen revealed that the total viewership could have been even higher if the episode had aired nationwide. However, due to preempting by Nexstar and Sinclair on their stations following the show’s suspension by Disney, “Jimmy Kimmel Live” was not accessible to 23% of U.S. households.

Among the key demographic of adults aged 18-49, the show achieved a remarkable 0.87 rating, a staggering 568% increase from the previous season’s average rating of 0.13. This also marks the highest demo rating for a regularly scheduled episode since 2015.

During his return episode, Jimmy Kimmel humorously addressed the anticipated strong viewership, poking fun at critics who claimed the show had “no ratings” during his absence. Kimmel quipped in his monologue, “Well, I do tonight! You almost have to feel sorry for [Trump]. He tried his best to cancel me. Instead, he forced millions of people to watch the show. That backfired bigly.”

Kimmel also took the opportunity to highlight the importance of free speech and express gratitude to those who supported his right to express his beliefs during his suspension. He thanked his fellow late night hosts, as well as surprising figures like Ben Shapiro, Clay Travis, Candace Owens, Mitch McConnell, Rand Paul, and even Ted Cruz for speaking out against the administration and defending his right to voice his opinions.