NBC's return to Manhattan and its titular Night Court couldn't have gone much better according to Nielsen ratings from the revival's premiere. Featuring two back-to-back episodes on Tuesday night, the revival series not only handily dominated the night, but managed to pull in the most viewers of any comedy debut in over five years for NBC. The last series to make a splash bigger than Night Court on the network was another highly-anticipated reboot - 2017's Will & Grace.
The workplace comedy series delivered the highest-rated and most-watched program of the night with its first episode, landing an impressive 7.4 million viewers and scoring a 1.0 rating with viewers in the key demographic of adults 18-49. Those numbers are still expected to rise as Nielsen's data is finalized on Thursday, but it puts the premiere head-and-shoulders over other programs this year. No network has managed ratings that high without the help of the NFL as a lead-in. Moreover, the success sustained into the second episode which pulled a lower but still impressive 6.7 million viewers on average and a 0.9 rating in the 18-49 demographic. Those numbers make it easily the biggest broadcast premiere of the season so far, but it's also the top comedy premiere between both broadcast and cable.
More than likely, the name helped draw some eyes toward Night Court. The original series, created by Reinhold Weege, ran for nine seasons and became a beloved and oft-underrated classic. This revival, while trading almost all of its old cast members, also managed to keep one of its most prominent in John Larroquette who returns to his Emmy-winning role as sleazy prosecutor Dan Fielding and has been an early source of praise for the show. It's also not unprecedented for revival series to do especially well in general. ABC's Roseanne reboot debuted to earth-shattering numbers for a broadcast show in 2018 and its success has carried on through The Conners which is still ongoing. Still, that doesn't make Night Court's accomplishment any less impressive, especially now when streaming services and other forms of entertainment are even more prevalent than back then.
What is NBC's Night Court Revival About?
The new Night Court stars Melissa Rouch as Abby Stone, the daughter of the original series' judge Harry Stone (Harry Anderson) who has become an unwaveringly optimistic judge herself. Following in her father's footsteps, she presides over cases during the night shift at a Manhattan criminal court. She's tasked with bringing order to the crew and the court which features plenty of oddballs and cynics including the aforementioned Dan Fielding. Dan Rubin developed the series for television in the stead of the late Weege who passed away in 2012.
Rauch and Larroquette lead a team of fresh faces that includes Lacretta, India de Beaufort, Kapil Talwalkar, and Dimiter Marinov. Night Court airs every Tuesday night on NBC at 8 p.m. Check out the trailer for the revival below.