'Walking Dead' Midseason Finale Scores With 10.5 Million Viewers

AMC drama grows 58% over season two mark

By Andrea Morabito -- Broadcasting & Cable, 12/3/2012 5:00:37 PM

The midseason finale of AMC's The Walking Dead delivered scary-high ratings on Sunday night, drawing 10.5 million total viewers at 9 p.m., up 58% from its season two midseason finale.

Combined with its 10 p.m. and midnight replays, the finale episode totaled 15.2 million viewers for the night. The drama also posted major year-over-year gains with the key demos, up 54% among adults 18-49 to 6.9 million viewers and up 52% with adults 25-54 to 6 million viewers.

Walking Dead is averaging 6.7 million adults 18-49 this season, becoming the first cable series to beat all the fall broadcast entertainment series in the key demo, this year drawing more younger viewers than The Voice, Modern Family and The Big Bang Theory.

Following TWD, the midseason finale of the live after show Talking Dead averaged 2.2 million total viewers at 11 p.m. and 1.5 million viewers in each of the key adult demos, improving by more than 100% in all three marks.

Walking Dead will resume its final eight episodes of season three on Sunday, Feb. 10 at 9 p.m.