Wheel of Fortune Ratings: Ryan Seacrest’s Debut Delivers Biggest Premiere Week in 5 Years

Ryan Seacrest is the wheel deal, folks.

Seacrest’s first week as host of Wheel of Fortune averaged 8.31 million total viewers (per Nielsen, Live+Same Day), up 21% year over year to deliver the long-running game show’s largest premiere week audience in five years.

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Wheel was also up double-digit percentages in all key demos.

Wheel of Fortune in turn emerged as the No. 1 show in syndication that week, with that average audience of 8.31 million and a 4.88 household rating.

Seacrest’s very first episode as full-time host, which aired on Sept. 9, drew north of 9.6 million viewers — surging 70% from last fall’s premiere to mark Wheel of Fortune’s most-watched season opener in nine years.

In the coveted and delicious 18-to-49 demo, Seacrest’s Wheel debut was up 63% vs. the show’s year-ago premiere, with a 0.86 rating.

TVLine reader’s gave Seacrest’s Sept. 9 debut an average grade of “B-“; read our full recap.

Though Seacrest is now hosting Wheel of Fortune five days a week, we actually haven’t seen the last of Pat Sajak. New episodes of Celebrity Wheel of Fortune, with Sajak as host, will begin airing Monday, Oct. 14 at 8/7c on ABC.

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