'Boardwalk Empire' Steady in Season Three Return

Premiere episode's 2.9 million viewers on par with last year

By Andrea Morabito -- Broadcasting & Cable, 9/17/2012 3:26:20 PM

Boardwalk Empire's season three premiere drew 2.9 million viewers at 9 p.m. Sunday night, steady with its season debut ratings last year.

An additional 1.1 million viewers tuned in for the 10 p.m. reairing of the HBO drama and another 624,000 at 11 p.m. to average 4.6 million viewers for the night. That cumulative viewership is up 2% over its second-season premiere night.

The prohibition-era drama is up for two Primetime Emmys on Sept. 23 for outstanding drama series and lead actor Steve Buscemi.