Amazon’s ‘The Rings of Power’ Has a Viewership Problem

The Rings of Power has struggled with getting the viewership it needs.

The first season of Amazon’s The Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power came out last year to a mixed reaction. It was a big and expensive show. However, it was also very divisive, and fans of the franchise were split. While the show had its good moments, it also had a lot of issues. While it’s certain these aren’t big enough to cause a reboot, they did seemingly drive viewers away. Widely considered to be the most expensive television show ever made, The Rings of Power needed to find a large fan base and pull in big numbers to be a success. Based on some new reports it seems like this didn’t quite happen. In fact, The Rings of Power has a viewership problem.

Hidden Figures

via Amazon

Amazon, like many other streaming services, is pretty closed-lipped about its viewership numbers. As such it can be hard to tell just how well a show is doing. According to the studio, the first episode of Rings of Power was viewed by 25 million people on its first day. That’s the highest premiere of any Amazon show. Indeed the company seemed very happy with these initial numbers. Still, it’s not really a shock that the first episode got a lot of views. After all, this was a new show set in a massive franchise and billed as the most expensive show of all time. But following this, Amazon got a lot more secretive about numbers. Many suspected this was due to poor performance.

The Rings of Power Viewership Problems Come to Light

via Amazon

Recently, we’ve got some new information on numbers. These show that the Rings of Power has a viewership problem. According to The Hollywood Reporter, only 37% of American viewers completed the whole season. Overseas the number was higher at 45%. A 50% completion rate is considered good, but not great in the industry. RoP fell well below that. This is a big warning sign to me. As this reflects the fact that the show got a lot of people to turn in, but couldn’t keep them interested. Arguably that’s worse than having a smaller number of viewers show up, but them sticking with it.

Nielsen streaming numbers weren’t great either. Based on streaming minutes the show ranked #15 among original shows in 2022. This put it below another Amazon show, the Boys. Netflix’s Wednesday pulled in twice the viewership minutes, while Stranger Things beat it by more than five times. All of this is a problem.

You Don’t Have to Be the Best

You don’t have to be the best or the top show to be a success. That much is clear. To some degree making the top 15 in a very crowded market could be considered a success. And if Rings of Power was just any show it likely would be viewed as doing a good job. However, when you take one of the most popular and loved franchises and turn it into the most expensive TV show of all time, you are probably looking for better than just OK results. If less popular franchises backed with less money are beating you it’s a strong sign they put out a better product. It makes it very hard to justify all the money spent. Not only did viewers not show up, but the show hasn’t been winning many awards. You really expect better from a show like this.

Amazon Seems Undaunted By Rings of Powers Viewership Problems

Despite the mixed numbers Amazon Studios are putting a brave face on things. According to them the show is doing just fine and is not a failure. Maybe that’s true based on their internal metrics.

Indeed Amazon seems committed to the show and to try new things. They don’t want to ” reverse-engineer true creative vision”. That’s pretty laudable in my opinion. Most Netflix shows for instance have a bit of a sameness to them (same with the CW), if Amazon wants to avoid that, good for them. I also applaud them for not dumping Rings of Power, or The Wheel of Time for that matter, after a rough first season. Many studios are far too quick to kill shows that still have a shot at greatness. Still, hopefully, they can recognize that Rings of Power has problems, and address them.

Let us know if you think the show has a viewership problem, down in the comments!

Author: Abe Apfel

Abe is that rare thing, an Austin local born and raised here. Though he keeps on moving around, DC, Japan, ETC., he always seems to find his way back eventually. Abe has decades of experience with a wide range of tabletop and RPG games, from historicals, to Star Wars to D&D and 40K. He has been contributing to BOLS since almost the start, back when he worked at and then owned a local gaming store. He used to be big into the competitive Warhammer tournament scene but age has mellowed him and he now appreciates a good casual match. He currently covers 40K tactics and lore, as well as all things Star Wars, with occasional dabbling in other topics. Abe remains in mourning over the loss of WFB to this day.