'Yellowstone': More Data Revealed About the Show's Huge CBS Ratings

Yellowstone's broadcast debut is continuing to soar. The Paramount show's premiere ratings initially brought in 6.6 million viewers on CBS. Variety reports that the number rose to almost 7.5 million thanks to three days of delayed viewing via VOD, DVR, and other platforms. New data says that about half of those viewers had never even seen the Western drama. The other half, meanwhile, were veteran Yellowstone fans who wanted to tune in for a rewatch of the Dutton family.

The series was able to maintain 73 percent of its audience from the premiere, with 5 million viewers when the second episode of Season 1 aired. The drop was to be expected due to the NFL doubleheader, and those that were checking out the series may have decided that it wasn't for them or decided to binge-watch it instead. Moreover, it's also reported that around 1 million of the viewers for premiere night don't subscribe to cable and don't have access to Paramount Network, Yellowstone's home network. This means that people in that group would only have access to the drama if they had a Peacock subscription.

The Taylor Sheridan series initially premiered on Paramount Network in 2018 to only 2.8 million viewers. Since then, it has grown to be a huge success. Season 5's premiere last year saw 8.8 million viewers. Now, with Yellowstone on CBS, it wouldn't be surprising if that number is passed by fans both new and old. Especially since the show will continue to air on the network for at least the rest of the year.

With the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, CBS made a change to the fall 2023 schedule, like most networks. It had to pull acquired programming, and what better program to pull than a popular one that was once only on cable? It's clear that Yellowstone is doing pretty well on broadcast, and adding it was a good idea. It's unknown if this will continue into the new year, however. With the WGA strike over and writers getting back to work, it's only just a matter of time before SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP come to a resolution. Meaning that the network will need to make room for original scripted content that is long overdue.

Starring Kevin Costner, Luke Grimes, Kelly Reilly, West Bentley, Cole Hauser, Kelsey Asbille, and Gil Birmingham, Yellowstone follows the conflicts on the shared borders of the Yellowstone Ranch, a large cattle ranch, the Broken Rock Indian reservation, Yellowstone National Park, and land developers. The series is in the midst of its fifth and final season, but the back half of the season still doesn't have a premiere date.

All five seasons of Yellowstone are streaming on Peacock, so they don't only air on Paramount Network. With the series airing on CBS, it gives even more fans the chance to watch the series for the first time. The ratings will probably only rise as the season goes on, with more people discovering and rediscovering it. Even if some scenes may be changed due to the nature of them. Either way, Yellowstone is a success on broadcast TV, and it wouldn't be surprising if it got a permanent place on CBS' schedule. Be sure to watch Yellowstone on Sundays at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.