Michael Jordan’s documentary series ‘Last Dance’ has attracted an enviable number in viewership for cable sports channel ESPN.
According to gathered data by the network, ‘The Last Dance’ secured an average of 6.1 million viewers for the first two episodes aired on ESPN and ESPN2. The former aired the unedited part of the docuseries bearing all languages used by interviewees, while the latter aired the edited part for family viewing.
The data breakdown reveals that 3.5 million of the people who watched were between the ages of 18 and 49. Chicago, where Jordan spent majority of his basketball career was atop the top five local-market ratings with 12.1 in household, followed by Raleigh-Durham (6.5), Charlotte (4.7) and Greensboro (4.7). Norfolk, Virginia (4.9)
The standing figure makes the docuseries the most-watched original content on the network since 2004, outnumbering the previous lead ‘You Don’t Know Bo’ which housed 3.6 million total viewers. It’s also the most viewed ESPN documentary in history.
‘Last Dance’ was originally scheduled to premiere in June to help promote alongside the NBA finals. However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, executives moved up the premiere date to Sunday night, following the cancellation of all sporting activities in the US.
Divided under 10 episodes, ‘Last Dance’ records Jordan’s career, fame and legacy, with much focus on the 1997-98 Chicago Bulls effort to win their sixth NBA championship. The docuseries airs every Sunday night with a fresh episode, while streaming on Netflix.
By: Larry Adams
