The fifth season premiere of ‘Duck Dynasty’ aired Wednesday, Jan. 15, and the ratings were down sharply from the 12 million viewers who tuned in for the start of season four.
The reality show, detailing the zany antics of a family owned duck call business, did NOT receive the anticipated ratings bump following the controversy that threatened to derail ‘DD’ last month.
According to TV Line, 8.5 million people watched the popular A&E show this week featuring the wealthy Robertson family of West Monroe, Louisiana.
Of that number, the coveted 18-49 age demographic, only 4.2 million tuned in for the season premiere – a decrease of 33 percent for the back-to-back episodes. Sponsors are undoubtedly hoping for vast improvement in coming weeks.
The show pulled in $80 million in advertising sales for the first nine months of 2013, and merchandise generated another $400 million in revenue, about half of which was sold through Walmart.
Things took a bad turn in mid-December when A&E suspended family patriarch Phil Robertson for inflammatory comments he made against black people and gay people during an interview for GQ magazine.
Willie Robertson and the rest of the family informed the network that they would not continue to film new episodes without Phil at the helm. A&E relented and the first episode of the new season aired earlier this week.
The show will appear in the regular Wednesday night lineup at 10:00 p.m. EST on A&E.
Photo: WENN