Oscars Viewership Climbed After Will Smith Struck Chris Rock, Nielsen Data Shows
The Academy Awards audience grew by more than half a million viewers in the minutes after the on-stage slap, even as the telecast stayed far below pre-pandemic-era norms.
By Ishani Kapalli ·
The audience for Sunday's Academy Awards grew by more than 500,000 viewers shortly after Will Smith struck Chris Rock on stage, giving the ceremony an unexpected late-night boost, according to Nielsen figures released by ABC.
The incident occurred at 10:27 p.m. Eastern time. Rock, who was presenting an award, had joked about the closely cropped hair of Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, who has alopecia, a condition that causes hair loss. Smith walked on stage and hit Rock, then went back to his seat and loudly shouted, using expletives, for the comedian to stop speaking about his wife.
Nielsen counted nearly 17.4 million viewers in the minutes following the slap, compared with 16.8 million just before it. Smith's words and Rock's replies were muted during the broadcast, which left many people watching at home unsure of what had taken place. Some speculated that it was part of the show. It was not.
Before the confrontation, the audience had been shrinking. The biggest crowd Nielsen recorded came earlier in the evening, when almost 17.7 million people tuned in to see Troy Kotsur, the first deaf man to win an acting Oscar, give an emotional acceptance speech for his supporting performance in "CODA."
Viewership fell off quickly after the altercation but rebounded when Smith, the heavy favorite for best actor, returned to the stage to accept the award for his work in "King Richard." About 17.4 million people watched that speech, Nielsen reported.
On Monday, Smith apologized for his behavior. Earlier the same day, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that it was carrying out a formal review of the incident.
For the full broadcast, the Oscars averaged 16.6 million viewers, including about 4.9 million between the ages of 18 and 49, according to Nielsen. That total was 58% higher than last year's record low of 10.4 million, though it remained by a wide margin the second-smallest audience the show has ever drawn.
ABC also said the telecast generated 22.7 million interactions on social media, an increase of 139% over last year's ceremony.
Source: Boston.com
