‘The Walking Dead’ Season 9 Viewership Dips to Another All-Time Low

Redemption doesn’t seem like an achievement for The Walking Dead Season 9 just yet. Comments and reviews have generally been favorable since the hit AMC zombie show premiered last week. Fans and critics liked the bold direction that new showrunner Angela Kang plots TWD to be. Gone are the days of the slow-paced, single-character arcs per episode. But despite this positive change, though, the show is still reeling from the past seasons that led to its steady decline in ratings.

According to Deadline, this week’s latest Walking Dead episode, “The Bridge,” is the second least-watched episode of the entire series next to Season 1’s “Vatos.” It’s also considerably lower than the ratings for Season 8’s second episode. The October 14 episode had an average viewership of 5 million, a 19% drop from the season premiere, “A New Beginning.” Among it’s usual 18-49 demographic, the show also suffered a huge 21% drop compared to the premiere episode.

Jackson Lee Davis/AMC

A few factors come to mind when it comes to The Walking Dead’s viewership dip. It’s a known fact that ever since the show premiered in 2010, peaks and downward spirals were a constant thing. Call it what you want—a boring narrative, characters being killed off for dramatic effect, cliffhangers… the list goes on. But another factor could be this week’s Sunday Night Football game where the Red Sox won over the Astros and Tom Brady setting the stadium on fire by making history come alive. Another could be the audience interest with live television shows. Since streaming is a big thing, most viewers prefer subscribing to a premier service of some sort to catch up with their shows. AMC has this kind of service too, which could explain why most fans opt to watch the episode ad-free later during the week.

But one thing (actually, two things) that could make or break this season’s hype is the impending departure of The Walking Dead’s leader, Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln). The actor is leaving the show for good this year, possibly around the midseason finale. Partner that with Lauren Cohan’s shaky status as series regular as she moves to ABC for her new action-comedy series Whiskey Cavalier. With both main characters in danger of erasing themselves from the picture, fans are left unsure as to where The Walking Dead would go.

Hopefully, with Kang’s skillful direction, the show would pick up steam once again with it’s new and improved storytelling and premise. After all, the showrunner is taking The Walking Dead back to its roots—interaction, conflict, and moral dilemmas that make up the reality of the zombie apocalypse.

The Walking Dead continues next Sunday, October 21st, with “Warning Signs” at 9/8c on AMC.