An astounding 8.6 million viewers responded to the call of Duck Dynasty's third-season premiere Wednesday night.
The A&E juggernaut, one of the biggest reality success stories of the past year, returned up 132 percent from its sophomore debut. Back-to-back episodes at 10 p.m. topped all broadcast outings but CBS' CSI in total viewers, and its scores in the demo were equally as impressive.
Up 127 percent in adults 18-49, Duck Dynasty drew 5 million viewers in the golden demo. Among the network's targeted adults 25-54, it was up 117 percent to 4.9 million.
By all key measures, Duck Dynasty ranks as the network's biggest telecast ever and the top cable outing of the night.
Duck Dynasty is produced for A&E Networks by Gurney Productions, with Deirdre Gurney, Scott Gurney, David McKillop, Elaine Frontain Bryant and Lily Neumeyer serving as executive producers.
