‘Saturday Night Live’ ratings: Michael Keaton show improves from Dwayne Johnson, George Ezra

Here is certainly that we definitely did not expect this weekend: Higher ratings for the new episode of “Saturday Night Live.” This is not meant to be any sort of slam on the NBC series or Michael Keaton, who did a great job last night; instead, it was all about scheduling. We didn’t really imagine there would be a huge pool of people staying up late the night before Easter, knowing that there are early-morning church services and family visits for many. Sure, not everyone is Christian, but it is also Passover and even some non-religious viewers spend time with their family this weekend.

So even in spite of all of this, Keaton’s show with musical guest Carly Ray Jepsen scored a 2.0 rating in the 18-49 demographic, which is actually a better number than any NBC show this past week other than “The Voice.” A huge victory for the network. This is a slight increase from the show hosted by Dwayne Johnson, but we actually thank the man otherwise known as The Rock in part for this. His show really helped to get some better buzz going about this season, which was maligned in the early days.

Overall, this is starting to be a better time for “SNL” as a whole. Kate McKinnon has emerged as a breakout star, and we’re seeing especially great stuff from Taran Killam and Bobby Moynihan. While we are likely to lose Kenan Thompson after this season, it feels like the majority of the rest of the cast, at least some of the longtime ones, will be staying put. That means more consistency year-to-year than we’ve had in a while.

Next week, the challenge will turn to “Empire” star Taraji P. Henson, who should get a nice bump in theory from fans of that show. Our prediction right now? She’s not getting “Empire” ratings, but maybe a 2.2 rating is feasible.

Head over here to read our review from last night’s show! Also, you can sign up now to get some other updates on everything we cover sent right over to you, courtesy of our official CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: NBC.)