Moviefone Editorial

Tag: spike-tv

  • ‘Yellowstone’ Ends Season 1 as Second Most Watched Cable TV Show, Behind ‘The Walking Dead’

    ‘Yellowstone’ Ends Season 1 as Second Most Watched Cable TV Show, Behind ‘The Walking Dead’

    Yellowstone, Kevin Costner
    Paramount Network

    Kevin Costner has found his new niche.

    TheWrap just shared some interesting cable numbers from Nielsen. They may or may not surprise you, but they raised our eyebrows a bit.

    “The Walking Dead” has long been the most-watched cable TV show, even with the sinking numbers of the past few years. But “Yellowstone” landed in the No. 2 spot in its freshman season.

    “Yellowstone” — starring Costner, Wes Bentley, Kelly Reilly, Luke Grimes, and Cole Hauser — is airing its Season 1 finale tonight (Wednesday, August 22) on Paramount Network.

    Paramount is the newly rebranded Spike TV, and “Yellowstone” is the most-watched show the network has ever had, under any name.

    “Yellowstone” has averaged 5 million total viewers each week, counting a full seven days. That’s overall viewers, but in terms of ratings, “Yellowstone” has averaged a 1.42 in the coveted 18-49 demographic. “Yellowstone” has also earned nearly 10 million streams on Viacom owned-and-operated platforms, as well as 6.8 million video-on-demand transactions.

    So, no surprise, Paramount Network has already ordered a Season 2. But yes surprise to the chart TheWrap posted with a rundown of the most-watched cable shows:

    Cable TV ratings
    Nielsen, via TheWrap

    That’s from the 2017-18 TV season, ranked by Nielsen’s Live + 3 Day metric, counting 72-hours worth of delayed viewing. So that’s why it’s slightly lower than the numbers for a full seven-day week.

    “The Walking Dead” is clearly still far ahead. But … we should be watching History’s “The Curse of Oak Island,” maybe?

    “Yellowstone” Season 1 ends tonight at 10 p.m. on Paramount. “The Walking Dead” Season 9 will be back to reclaim its throne in October on AMC.

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  • Spike TV Is Ending, and Whoever Tweets for Them Just Unleashed

    Spike TV is ending as of Thursday, Jan. 18. The network Viacom started in 2003 as “The First Network for Men” is rebranding as the Paramount Network. According to the New York Times, Paramount Network sees itself as “televisions’s destination for premium entertainment and storytelling.”

    Paramount’s new life begins Thursday with a live episode of the popular Spike TV show “Lip Sync Battle.” Paramount will also feature new shows like “Waco,” a miniseries starring Taylor Kitsch and Michael Shannon; and “Yellowstone,” starring Kevin Costner. Spike was known for showing LOTS of episodes of “COPS,” and the NYT joked that there will be “many fewer showings” in the rebranding.

    The network will devote about a third of its schedule to original programming, and give the rest of the time to TV shows and movies from the Viacom and Paramount vaults. They’re already adapting some of their own past movies for modern audiences, like the new “Heathers” series.

    The self-described “Soon-to-be-ex-Viacom employee” who runs the Spike TV Twitter account decided to spend his/her/their last week tweeting out some funny and foul-mouthed last hurrahs. Some of the tweets are too f-bomb heavy to include, but here are most of them:


    Fans appreciated the tweets and wanted them to continue. In case you want to keep the farewell party going, the link with the Twitter bio leads to a Spotify page with 32 goodbye songs (including “Closing Time”). FYI, Paramount Network did reply to a fan asking what would happen to “COPS” episodes. The show will be coming to Paramount. It just may not air 329 times a day.

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  • ‘The Mist’ TV Series Trailer Looks Very Different From the Movie

    From l to r: Bryan Hunt (Okezie Morro), Kevin Copeland (Morgan Spector), Adrian Garf (Russell Posner) and Mia Lambert (Danica Curcic) band together when a foreboding mist arrives in one small town ushering in a terrifying new reality for its residents, putting their humanity to the test. Based on a story by Stephen King, Spike TV's orginal scripted series THE MIST premieres on Thursday, June 22 at 10 PM, ET/PT.Stephen King’s novella, “The Mist,” is getting its own TV series on Spike, and the new trailer highlights how different it will be from the 2007 movie.

    Frank Darabont directed the movie, starring a bunch of people who then went with him to make “The Walking Dead” for AMC. This new series was created by Christian Torpe, who told Entertainment Weekly he wants to be “respectful to the source material” without copying the “great adaptation” already out there on film.

    “The novella is 200 pages and one location, and we needed to change that to make an ongoing series. But we wanted to remain faithful to the heart of the story.” He said the TV series will be set at several locations, including a church and a mall. “We establish different little pressure cookers under the influence of whoever the leader would be in those locations. Each of them come up with different theories or beliefs about what’s going on. Eventually, the story lines will dovetail and turn into conflicts.”

    Here’s Spike’s trailer, which includes the tagline “Fear. Human. Nature”:“The Mist” — starring Morgan Spector, Alyssa Sutherland, Gus Birney, Danica Curcic, Okezie Morro, Luke Cosgrove, Darren Pettie, Russell Posner, Dan Butler, Isiah Washington, Jr., and Frances Conroy. — premieres Thursday, June 22 at 10 p.m. on Spike TV.

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  • Spike TV’s ‘I Am Heath Ledger’ Trailer May Break Your Heart

    It still feels like just yesterday that we lost him. If you’re a Heath Ledger fan, you probably remember where you were when you heard that he died. The groundbreaking star of “Brokeback Mountain” and “The Dark Knight” passed away from what was deemed an accidental intoxication from prescription drugs in January 2008. He was 28.

    Spike TV is now promoting its 90-minute documentary on the actor’s life, with the official trailer for “I Am Heath Ledger” poised to rip your heart out all over again:The star-studded documentary will air Wednesday, May 17 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Spike, after holding its world premiere April 23 at the Tribeca Film Festival. The film will also have a limited theatrical release on May 3 with Fathom Events. And you can also watch “I Am Heath Ledger” when it’s released on Digital HD and DVD on May 23.

    Here are more details from Spike:

    “I Am Heath Ledger” provides an intimate look at Heath through the lens of his own camera, with a treasure trove of never-before-seen footage, as he films and often performs in his own personal journey – extravagant in gesture and in action. Through these personal home movies, we get a rare glimpse into his true character – demonstrating his creative energy and unshakable willingness to take risks that instilled such an extraordinarily deep love and affection in the people that entered his life.

    The film features interviews from those who knew Heath best including close friends, family members, and industry peers, such as actors Naomi Watts, Ben Mendelsohn, Djimon Hounsou, and Emile Hirsch, directors Ang Lee and Catherine Hardwicke, musicians Ben Harper, Justin Vernon (Bon Iver), N’fa, and Grace Woodroofe, and the Ledger family. “I Am Heath Ledger” recounts his fabled rise to the pinnacle of the Hollywood dream and the indelible mark he left. Not only did he cut a path for himself, but Heath often championed other talents and artists whose voices he thought deserved to be heard. The documentary also showcases his most memorable moments on screen from his beginnings in Australia to the heights of his Hollywood achievements.

    From his early hit films such as “10 Things I Hate About You,” to “The Patriot,” to “Monster’s Ball,” to his award-winning and critically-acclaimed role as Ennis in “Brokeback Mountain,” Heath was a remarkable talent whose work ethic, ambition, and integrity catapulted him to Hollywood’s elite. But his most iconic role, his Academy-Award® winning performance, The Joker in “The Dark Knight,” truly speaks to his profound talent as an actor. The documentary goes behind-the scenes of the shooting of “The Dark Knight,” as Heath morphed into the psychotic criminal-mastermind that will live in cinematic lore forever.

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  • Alec Baldwin Will Be the Butt of the Jokes in Spike’s ‘One Night Only’ Special

    Alec Baldwin Visits 'The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'After months of parodying the new president on “Saturday Night Live,” Alec Baldwin is going to have to deal with some laughs at his own expense.

    Spike TV has announced that it is gathering a group of the actor’s friends and colleagues to both honor and roast him in an upcoming “One Night Only” special. The event is described as “a night of comedic tributes,” and will be a black-tie affair attended by big names in the entertainment world. As the guest of honor, Baldwin will be present as well — hopefully with a thick skin.

    We don’t know yet who will be on hand to tease and pay tribute to him, but the actor has had plenty of high-profile co-stars over the years. He starred in the TV series “30 Rock” alongside Tina Fey and Tracy Morgan, plus notable films like “The Departed,” “Aviator,” and more. It’s bound to be a good show.

    “One Night Only: Alec Baldwin” will be taped on Sunday, June 25 at the Apollo Theater in New York City, and will then air on Sunday, July 9 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

  • Even Justin Bieber Non-Fans Think He Should’ve Won This ‘Lip Sync Battle’

    What a show! Both “Lip Sync Battle” — and by A-games we mean they both channeled their feminine sides and also played dress-up in ridiculous outfits. They sold their performances. But many fans — even people who would never dream of defending Justin Bieber — think he may have been robbed of a win. Not that Deion slacked, especially in his “Like a Virgin” crawl. That was magic. But JB completely committed to his Ozzy impression in “Crazy Train” and pulled a 180 for a cheeky but heartfelt rendition of Fergie’s “Big Girls Don’t Cry.” Ozzy vs. Madonna was a close one, but when JB put on his “Big Girl” pants, he slayed Deion’s “Play That Funky Music.” The Biebs deserved to win just for the stones to open with that “surprise song,” as host LL Cool J put it.

    Watch all four performances and decide who you think should’ve won. Congrats to Deion, but we would’ve gone the other way. Then again, maybe losing at LSB is the kind of thing that will just help Justin’s reputation. A lot of commenting fans seem to think he did a great job and should’ve won. Now, maybe, instead of being seen as a spoiled brat, he’s the unappreciated underdog.

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  • ‘Lip Sync Battle’ Is Back With Epic Lineup: Alison Brie, Justin Bieber, ‘Empire’ Cast

    Three mouthed-but-not-vocalized cheers for the return of “Lip Sync Battle”! Spike TV’s epic celebrity showdown, hosted by LL Cool J, was an instant hit when it debuted with Dwayne Johnson vs. Jimmy Fallon back in April. It really picked up steam with the Anne Hathaway vs. Emily Blunt match, traumatized us — in a good way — with Stephen Merchant and later Julianne Hough, then dipped a bit before going on break. Season 1 is not over, but it’s been off the air since May 28. But now it’s back with a vengeance, starting next Thursday, July 9.

    Here’s the upcoming lineup:

    • Alison Brie vs. Will Arnett — July 9
    • Justin Bieber vs. Deion Sanders — July 16
    • Andy Cohen vs. Willie Geist — July 23
    • Victoria Justice vs. Gregg Sulkin — July 30
    • Abbi Jacobson vs. Ilana Glazer — August 6
    • Iggy Azalea vs. Nick Young — August 13
    • Terrence Howard vs. Taraji P. Henson — August 20


    The shows were all pre-taped, so check out Spike’s preview, showing Will Arnett’s “Lego” routine; badass Alison Brie shooting down a photo of her opponent, Arnett (she’s totally winning her battle, you can tell just from the promo); Justin Bieber going full Ozzy, then reviving Deion Sanders; Terrence Howard playing dress up and the “Empire” stars getting back-up from Mary J. Blige herself:

    Bring it on! This is serious must-see TV, so you’d better be there. Shows air at 10 p.m. Thursdays on Spike TV, then the best clips are usually posted to the show’s YouTube page.

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  • This Salt-N-Pepa ‘Lip Sync Battle’ Could Use a Bit More Spice

    Maybe the “Lip Sync Battle” drama bar was just too high after Julianne Hough writhed to “I Just Had Sex” (in front of her brother!) and Stephen Merchant shoved a sock down his leather chaps to get extra “Dirrty.” We had high hopes for Salt-N-Pepa’s May 21 battle — and they were OK, but they did not push it far enough. They did not talk about sex, baby. It was relatively bland.

    Cheryl “Salt” James started Round 1 with Kelly Clarkson’s “Since U Been Gone.” Sandra “Pepa” Denton countered with Katy Perry’s “Firework”:
    Too tame. Not nearly the crazy we’ve come to expect.

    In Round 2, they both upped their games and brought in back-up dancers. Salt had a good run with “It’s Tricky” by RUN-D.M.C. but Pepa won with her very ’70s version of Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.” This round was more successful, but still needed more spice.

    Next week (May 28) is Queen Latifah vs. Marlon Wayans, so hopefully things get wild again. We’re here for the crazy, people!

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  • Watch Anna Kendrick and J.Lo Crush John Krasinski in ‘Lip Sync Battle’

    lip sync battleThis is why Spike’s “Lip Sync Battle” is already must-see TV. It just premiered in early April and it’s now a Thursday night staple, thanks to performances like this one from “Pitch Perfect” star Anna Kendrick.

    Last night (April 16), Anna took on John Krasinski, who is a producer of the show. She did two songs: “Steal My Girl” by One Direction, and “Booty” by Jennifer Lopez and Pitbull. For her fully choreographed “Booty” performance, she got back-up from the singer herself, J.Lo, and that sealed the deal. Total ownage.

    Check out the “Booty” performance here, with Jenny from the Block’s cameo:

    Boom! John couldn’t top that, although he was no slouch with “Bye Bye Bye” by NSYNC and “Proud Mary” by Tina Turner. Check out his clips over here.
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