A new drama series that premiered over the weekend gave Starz the biggest series launch in its history. The Hollywood Reporter’s Live Feed reports that the pirate drama "Black Sails" — a prequel to Robert Louis Stevenson’s "Treasure Island" — delivered 3.5 million viewers over the weekend and across viewing platforms.

The premiere telecast averaged 850,000 viewers on Saturday night at 9 p.m., while over the course of the weekend that rose to 2.6 million. Additionally, 900,000 people watched the show via on-demand and online viewing, the piece notes.

"Though the premiere telecast did not set a Starz high, both the weekend haul and the Saturday gross (1.7 million) set bests,” the story reports.

The series, which stars Toby Stephens, Hannah New, Luke Arnold and Jessica Parker, received a renewal back in July for a 10-episode second season — well before the show’s premiere.

“That two-season renewal for ‘Black Sails’ might not have been premature after all,” the story notes.