'The Walking Dead' Returns Strong in Delayed Viewing

10.16.2015

It looks like Alexandria brought Rick Grimes and his group some good luck after all.Â

â€‹The season six debut of AMC's Walking Dead hit 19.5 million viewers on Oct. 11, becoming the highest-rated premiere of the fall season in key demographics, beating out even broadcast's juggernaut, Empire.Â

Among adults 18-49, The Walking Dead garnered 12.8 million viewers and 12.1 million adults 25-54 in Live +3 ratings. Its after show, Talking Dead, hit 6.5 million viewers in the time slot that followed, with host Chris Hardwick and guestsÂ Scott M. Gimple, Greg Nicotero and Ethan Embry.Â

On social media, The Walking Dead retained its crown as well, becoming the No. 1 show mentioned on Facebook, was mentioned in almost 1 million tweets during premiere night from 825,000 users. The show also took over four of the top trending topics for the night

"We're so humbled and proud of the way this incredibly ambitious episode has been received," said Charlie Collier, president of AMC, SundanceTV and AMC Studios, in a statement. "All credit goes to the amazing talent that continues to drive this show, beginning with Robert Kirkman, Scott M. Gimple, the executive producers, cast and crew and, of course, the terrific fans who inspire us all."

Season six was slightly down from last year's debut, hitting roughly 14 million in Live+ Same Day ratings, compared to season five's 17 million viewers. Fox International Channels, which airs the show outside of the U.S., also claimed big ratings numbers for the show, up 17 percent from last season.Â

The sixth season premiere had been previously presented to superfans at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 9, two days before the premiere aired on AMC.Â

[Image courtesy of AMC]