‘Young Sheldon’ Flexes Cross-Platform Might in May
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The end of Young Sheldon’s seven-season run in May fueled a multi-platform surge for the show.
The CBS comedy scored some of the biggest on-air ratings for a scripted series in the 2023-24 season with its series finale: It drew 9.32 million viewers the night it aired and grew to 11.74 million over seven days. The show also brings in a healthy audience in syndication, and streaming (on Max, Netflix and Paramount+) grew substantially in its finale week as well.
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All told, Young Sheldon drew 6 billion minutes of viewing in May, split almost evenly between linear networks and streaming platforms, according to Nielsen.
Streaming reached a new high in share of TV use in May, the ratings provider’s monthly Gauge ranking shows. It had 38.8 percent of all usage, up from 38.4 percent in April. Bridgerton, whose third season premiered May 16 on Netflix, was the biggest streaming-exclusive title of the month, scoring 5.5 billion minutes of viewing.
Broadcasters’ share of viewing edged up a tenth of a point from April to 22.3 percent, helped by a host of season finales. Cable lost 0.9 points to finish at 28.2 percent partly due to a decline in the volume of live sports — as the NBA and NHL pared down their playoff fields, there were fewer games to fill the schedule.
YouTube ran its streak as the biggest individual streaming service to 16 months, capturing 9.7 percent of all TV use in May. Netflix followed with 7.6 percent, and Hulu was third at 3.1 percent.
Nielsen’s Gauge rankings for May are below.
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