‘Boardwalk Empire' Returns Down 8%

HBO drama's season two opener draws 2.9 million viewers

By Andrea Morabito -- Broadcasting & Cable, 9/27/2011 2:38:06 PM

The season premiere of Boardwalk Empire was watched by 2.9 million viewers in its 9 p.m. airing Sunday, down 8% from the HBO drama's season one average of 3.2 million viewers.

Repeat airings at 10 p.m. and 11 p.m. Sunday added an additional 971,000 and 623,000 viewers, respectively, bringing the episode's total reach to 4.5 million for the night.

Sunday's episode was off about 40% from Boardwalk's series debut last September, but this year had to face stiffer competition from broadcast premieres.