'The Sound of Music' Ratings Winner For NBC

NBC’s live revival of “The Sound of Music” averaged 18.5 million viewers Thursday, handily beating competitors in the Big Four throughout its three-hour telecast.

According to Variety, the Carrie Underwood-starrer peaked at the 9 p.m. hour, according to preliminary nationals from Nielsen, nabbing over 19 million viewers. The special’s biggest turnout was with women 25-54, a demo that notched a 7.0 in household rating during the primetime broadcast.

For its three hours, “Sound of Music” drew a 4.6 rating and 13 share among adults 18-49. In particular, “Sound of Music” gave NBC a rare victory in the brutal 8 p.m. timeslot, normally dominated by CBS’ “The Big Bang Theory” (4.6/14, 15.3 million).

“Big Bang” hadn’t finished second in overall viewers since May 2012.

Expect NBC-TV to air the production again before Christmas.