The much-anticipated Season 3 of ‘FBoy Island’ premiered on Monday, as a new trio of women embarked on a quest to find the nice guy among a sea of “manipulative douche-baggery,” according to host Nikki Glaser. However, it seems that audiences weren’t exactly thrilled with the show’s return.
The reality format, which was picked up by The CW after being canceled by Max following the first two seasons, experienced dismal ratings during its primetime slot.
According to live+same-day Nielsen data, an average of approximately 158,000 viewers tuned in across the two-hour premiere, with a 0.02 rating among adults 18-49.
It’s not exactly surprising that ‘FBoy Island’ isn’t an immediate hit for The CW. The network’s parent company, Nexstar, has repeatedly emphasized that its average viewer is 58 years old. This partially played a role in the cancellation of most young adult-focused scripted series last year.
While The CW may not be known for dominating the broadcast landscape, these ratings are still notably low for the network. To put it into perspective, ‘All American,’ one of The CW’s remaining scripted series, averaged close to 500,000 viewers per episode in Season 5.
On the unscripted front, ‘Whose Line Is It Anyway?’ managed to capture about half a million viewers throughout its 19th season, while ‘Penn & Teller: Fool Us’ pulled in nearly 700,000 viewers during Season 9.
Unfortunately, it’s difficult to find ratings for the original streaming run of the first two seasons of ‘FBoy Island,’ as they weren’t available on traditional TV networks. HBO simply mentioned at the time of the Season 2 renewal that the show witnessed consistent audience growth week after week.
Earlier this year, The CW aired Season 2 of ‘FBoy Island’ to prime audiences for the latest season. However, these 10 episodes received a similar lukewarm reception, averaging around 157,000 viewers and gradually declining after peaking at 190,000 viewers for Episode 2.
Despite the show’s disconnect from The CW’s core audience, Season 3 of ‘FBoy Island’ carried considerable potential. With former ‘Bachelorette’ contestant Katie Thurston joining as one of the three leading ladies, the season could have attracted fans from the long-running ABC franchise. Additionally, the new season’s debut coincided with a relatively quiet period for broadcast TV due to the resolution of the 148-day writers strike and the ongoing actors strike.
There’s a chance that the dating series will perform better on digital platforms, which is where younger viewers typically watch television. The CW’s other shows targeting younger audiences, such as ‘All American,’ ‘The Flash,’ ‘Riverdale,’ and ‘Walker,’ have traditionally gained substantial viewership through delayed digital viewing. Some of them have even experienced their greatest audience numbers when the new season concludes and is released on Netflix.
However, only time will tell if ‘FBoy Island’ can grow its audience as the season progresses. If not, it raises questions about the prospects of the upcoming midseason debut of ‘FGirl Island.’
