
It seems like every award ceremony this year has broken the record for most-watched award show in recent history, and The Oscars is no exception. Last night, the 82nd Annual Academy Awards was the most-watched television broadcast in five years, pulling in an audience of 41.3 million viewers and becoming the show’s second straight year of audience gains. Meanwhile, the pre-show specials drew in record numbers as well, with ABC’s red carpet pre-show alluring 25.1 million viewers (the show’s largest audience in three years) and the final Barbara Walters special nabbing 15 million viewers (its largest audience since 2002). Of course, the numbers were hurt because Cablevision blocked out more than 3 million viewers from watching the beginning of the broadcast, but can’t hate… These numbers are tough!




