TV Ratings: ‘SNL: Weekend Update’ Scores in First Outing

TV Ratings: ‘SNL: Weekend Update’ Scores in First Outing
The half-hour launches as the top summer comedy premiere, new or returning, in nine years.
Courtesy of NBC

NBC’s string of Thursday editions of Saturday Night Live’s Weekend Update got off to a competitive start last night.

At 9 o’clock, the half-hour special averaged a 1.7 rating among adults 18-49. That put it behind only CBS’ typically dominant Big Brother in the key demographic.

Weekend Update, which also jumped 42 percent from its reality lead-in (The Wall), averaged 6.5 million viewers for the night. Even with sliding linear ratings across broadcast, both of those numbers are…