HD Ratings: The Hulk Still Incredible

A 13-year-old, second-tier superhero movie still had the power to dominate prime-time Friday in the core commercial demographics.

The first hour of Three’s The Incredible Hulk wasn’t strong enough to beat TVNZ 1’s The Repair Shop but it did wipe out TVNZ 2’s Wipeout and went on to win the 8.30 hour.

Three’s 7.30 Friday kidult movie strategy is hit-and-miss but the right title can still deliver the network the competitive edge for much less than the opposition’s shiny new objects.

Hulk, for instance, upended the previous week’s ratings, when TVNZ 2’s Have You Been Paying Attention? commanded the most key demo viewers at 8.30.

The movie averaged 2.4% of 25-54 year-olds and 2.1% of 18-49s versus 1.7% / 1.1% for Wipeout and 1.5% / 1.2% for HYBPA.

The Repair Shop averaged 4.7% / 3.4% but lead-out Celebrity Best Home Cook could muster only 1.8% / 1.7%.

TVNZ 2 led from 9.30 with 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown winning in both major demos.

But TVNZ 1 won the night overall with the biggest key demo shares, with Three about 10 points behind in each, closely followed by TVNZ 2.

It was a similarly outcome on Thursday, but with TVNZ 2 narrowly edging out Three for second place.

Demolition Down Under continues to be a weak link for Three, losing roughly half the 25-54 and 18-49 viewership of lead-in Lego Masters.

TVNZ 1 initially led at 7.30 with My Impossible House but viewers switched over midpoint to catch TVNZ 2’s MasterChef Australia, which averaged 4.5% of 25-54s and 2.9% of 18-49s.

Lead-out Police Ten 7 won with 18-49s but 25-54s went back to TVNZ 1 to see the end of 10 Years Younger in 10 Days.

TVNZ 2’s Filthy House SOS cleaned up post-9.30 with 1.7% of 25-54s and 1.5% of 18-49s vs 1.6% / 1.3% for Coronation Street and 1.1% / 0.7% for Three’s Cocaine Trade Exposed.

Earlier, it was another top night for TVNZ 1’s Seven Sharp, which had twice the 25-54 and 18-49 viewership of Three’s The Project and led Shortland Street by several points; Friday’s gap between SS and TP was even wider.