Movies News
Oscar ratings get a lift
Feb 28, 2012, 15:17 GMT
Los Angeles - The Oscar telecast drew over 39 million viewers in the United States, according to ratings figures issued Monday by Nielsen.
The figure represented a 4 per cent increase over last year's viewing figures and means that the Sunday night show hosted by Billy Crystal enjoyed the second-highest viewership for any Oscar telecast in the last five years. The highest recent audience of 41.3 million tuned in in 2010 when The Hurt Locker beat the box-office record holder Avatar for the top prize.
The positive ratings will boost Oscar producers who struggled to revive interest in the movie event, which was devoid of any blockbusters among the top-prize contenders and whose pursuit of a younger audience had seemingly been derailed by the choice of Billy Crystal, 63, as the evening's host.
