TV Ratings: ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Hits Six-Week High With Alex Karev Farewell

By Will Thorne

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – “Grey’s Anatomy” rose to its highest TV ratings in six weeks, and there are no prizes for guessing why.

After it was announced that Justin Chambers was exiting the show, last night’s episode finally gave some kind of explanation as to why his beloved Alex Karev would never be seen again after 16 seasons on the show. With the dramatic reveal came strong numbers, a 1.3 among adults 18-49 and 6.3 million viewers to be exact. That represents the show’s highest scores in both metrics since Jan. 23. Earlier on, its “Station 19” spinoff came in even on last episode at a 1.0 rating and 6.1 million viewers. “A Million Little Things” rounded off the night with a 0.6 and 3.7 million viewers for the Disney-owned network.

Meanwhile over on CBS, “Young Sheldon” dipped below a 1.0 rating for the first time in its run. The “Big Bang Theory” spinoff came in at a 0.9 and 8.5 million viewers, a seven-week low in the viewership metric. The rest of CBS’ lineup came in roughly even week-to-week, with “Mom” scoring a 0.7 and 5.8 million viewers, followed by “The Unicorn” and “Carol’s Second Act,” both at a 0.6. “Tommy” starring Edie Falco posted a 0.5 and 4.6 million viewers in the 10 p.m. time slot.

Both “Last Man Standing” and “Deput” lost ground on Fox. The former scored a 0.6 rating and 3.5 million viewers (a series low to date), while the latter drew 3.3 million viewers and a 0.5. “Outmatched” was even at a 0.5 and 2 million viewers.

NBC saw two shows increase their 18-49 rating, namely “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” to a 0.6 and “Will & Grace” to a 0.5. The former scored a four-week viewership high with 1.9 million. However, its wasn’t all rosy for the Peacock, as “Indebted” ticked down to a 0.3 rating and 1.4 million pairs of eyeballs.

On the CW, “Katy Keene” continued its run of 0.1 ratings, drawing 515,000 total viewers.