Oscars Ratings Hit Record Low, Crash 58 Percent In One Year

Oscars viewership through the years

2014: 43.7 million
2015: 37.3 million
2016: 34.4 million
2017: 32.9 million
2018: 26.5 million
2019: 29.6 million
2020: 23.6 million
2021: 9.8 million

— Morning Brew ☕️ (@MorningBrew) April 26, 2021

Per Nielsen Live+Same Day preliminary national numbers, an average of 9.85 million viewers tuned in on Sunday evening to watch a more intimate and stripped-down version of the Oscars in the midst of a pandemic. That’s a 58.3%, 13.75 million viewer drop-off from last year. The Academy’s third host-less show in a row scored a 1.9 rating among adults 18-49 in the fast national ratings, a 64.2% dip from 2020.

For comparison, last year’s ceremony garnered a 5.3 rating in the key demographic and 23.6 million viewers per the night’s time-zone adjusted fast national charts. The Oscars in 2019 delivered a 7.7 rating in adults 18-49 and 29.6 million viewers. While up 12% from 2018, that viewership figure represented the second-smallest audience ever for an Academy Awards telecast at the time. 2018 delivered the previous smallest viewership tally with 26.5 million viewers.

Glenn Close just won her first Oscar for Best Live Action Short Film #Oscars pic.twitter.com/RgtaFO33Uj

— Joey Nolfi (@joeynolfi) April 26, 2021

WATCH: Yes, Glenn Close just did "Da Butt" at the #Oscars. pic.twitter.com/8y1XpiWkNm

— Mediaite (@Mediaite) April 26, 2021