CNN found a way to beat its cable news competition Thursday night. The Hollywood Reporter’s Live Feed reports that the CNN Films documentary "Blackfish," about the fate of killer whales in captivity, won the 9-11 p.m. block in the key demos of adults 25-54 and adults 18-49.

The program averaged 472,000 viewers in adults 25-54, easily beating Fox News Channel (311,000) and MSNBC (235,000), the story reports.

The show did even better in adults 18-49. "Blackfish" averaged 688,000 viewers, beating the combined total for FNC (216,000) and MSNBC (173,000).

"Besting all other CNN Films this year, the Sundance Film Festival favorite premiered after a big promotional push from the network," THR reports. "Total viewers for the two-hour block saw FNC maintain its typical lead with 1.89 million viewers, but CNN rose to a strong second with 1.36 million viewers. MSNBC averaged 867,0000."

Leading out from "Blackfish," CNN aired Anderson Cooper’s 90-minute "AC Special Report" at 11 p.m. "It placed second to FNC (1.2 million viewers, 334,000 adults 25-54) with 560,000 viewers and 231,000 in the demo," THR reports, adding: "MSNBC averaged 361,000 viewers and 74,000 adults 25-54 for the same time period."