Kevin Costner's Paramount epic "Yellowstone" opened its fifth season on Sunday with 12.1 million viewers,
The show broadcast on Viacom networks CMT, TV Land, and Pop, with same-day reruns, to boost viewership. Paramount's initial episode had 9.4 million viewers.
In an Associated Press interview, Costner noted, "We've been able to create a show that didn't start out being popular but did it on its own terms."
Josef Adalian, West Coast editor of New York magazine's Vulture.com, said "Yellowstone" is one of the most appointment-viewing-friendly shows on TV because it caters to an older audience acclimated to traditional TV viewing.
“People want to watch it now,” Adalian remarked. It shows the Western's lasting popularity, and it's amazing there haven't been copycats.
The show dominates red states. According to Philo, a live TV streaming service, Republican governors—led by Texas—watch "Yellowstone" three times more than Democratic governors.
Paramount's success with "Yellowstone" benefits a competitor. Since Paramount+ didn't exist when they were available, Comcast's Peacock service owns streaming rights for previous seasons.
Fox News Channel averaged 3.15 million prime-time viewers. ESPN got 2.19 million, MSNBC 1.66 million, Paramount 1.58 million, and Hallmark 1.23 million.
"World News Tonight" averaged 8 million viewers. NBC's "Nightly News" attracted 6.8 million viewers and CBS's "Evening News" garnered 5 million.