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HBO Sets a Nine-Year Viewership Record

May 28, 2013  •  Post A Comment

HBO hit a viewership home run over the weekend with the debut of an original production. Deadline.com reports that the turnout for “Behind the Candelabra” — the Steven Soderbergh-directed Liberace biopic — set a nine-year mark for the pay-cable channel.

Sunday’s first airing of the program delivered 2.4 million viewers, the most for an HBO original movie premiere since May 30, 2004, when 2.6 million showed up for “Something the Lord Made.”

“’Candelabra’ also did considerably better than HBO’s last biopic, on record producer Phil Spector,” the report notes. “Starring Al Pacino and Helen Mirren, the film about Spector’s first trial for the 2003 death of actress Lana Clarkson pulled in 754,000 viewers in its 9 p.m. airing on March 24. Overall, ‘Phil Spector’ had 1.039 million viewers over two plays on March 24. Across two plays Sunday, ‘Candelabra’ had a total of 3.5 million viewers watching the 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. broadcasts.”

Michael Douglas stars in “Candelabra” as Liberace, with Matt Damon playing his much younger lover Scott Thorson. The movie is based on Thorson’s 1988 memoir, and co-stars Dan Aykroyd, Scott Bakula and Rob Lowe.

One Comment

  1. Guess like the studio bosses who all passed on this — with the talent already attached — have some ‘spaining to do this afternoon…
    Bravo for HBO and their enlightened attitude towards picking material in which to invest their time, their money and their reputation.

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