It’s only been a few weeks since Jimmy Fallon took over The Tonight Show, and he’s the new King of Late Night!
For now…
While Fallon has been winning the ratings war, this three-way race between Tonight, Jimmy Kimmel Live and The Late Show With David Letterman is heating up, with Fallon emerging on top, Letterman in third place and Kimmel placing second, but gaining ground.
Over at The Wrap, they’ve broken down the numbers, and there are a lot of factors contributing to Fallon’s ratings success, including the major media attention he received during Jay Leno’s torch-passing transition, increased viewership from the Sochi Winter Olympics and a parade of big-name guests in his first weeks.
However, the gap between Tonight and Fallon is getting narrower every night.
In Fallon’s first week, Tonight easily topped Kimmel with more than 6 million viewers compared to Kimmel’s average of 2.5 million, but last week — Fallon’s third — that gap shrunk by a whopping 71 per cent, with only 1.8 million more viewers watching Fallon than Kimmel.
Yet it’s not all about ratings; Fallon also tops Kimmel in social media, with more Twitter followers and Facebook “Likes”; than Kimmel.
Kimmel, however, is the king when it comes to YouTube; with his YouTube channel dating back to 2009, Kimmel has managed to build up more followers than Fallon, whose channel launched in 2012.
Here’s a breakdown, courtesy of The Wrap:
