Last night’s debut of Charlie Sheen’s new sitcom Anger Management was a home run in the ratings. According to the FX network, the premiere episode was “the most-watched scripted comedy primetime series premiere in cable history,” with 5.47 million total viewers, which also makes it FX’s most-watched series premiere ever. The second episode, which aired immediately after, did even better, with 5.74 million total viewers.
Despite being panned by critics, Sheen’s comedy about an unorthodox anger-management therapist certainly attracted eyeballs to check out the latest from the tiger-blood-drinking, Adonis-DNA-having warlock who was TV’s highest-paid actor before being fired from Two and a Half Men.
Good news for Sheen, who stands to make a bundle if the show’s a hit. FX placed an initial order for 10 episodes; if all 10 airings maintain an agreed-upon rating, FX will then have to order 90 more, providing enough episodes to sell into syndication and make some serious money.
Sheen should probably hold off before he starts writing big cheques to porn stars, though; time will tell whether those viewers who sampled the mega-hyped show liked it enough to come back next week, and it’s practically a given that ratings will drop in subsequent weeks. Stay tuned.
