Why ‘Outlander’ season 3 shouldn’t worry about ‘Game of Thrones’ — or ‘The Walking Dead,’ either
The third season of “Outlander” will premiere on Starz in the spring, and if you’ve been reading much of what we’ve had to say about the show over at CarterMatt, you know a thing or two already about when the show could potentially come back on the air.
In a recent article, we explained that unless “Black Sails” (another series airing on Starz) decides to start airing double-episodes, or the scheduling powers-that-be do something surprising and air the two shows on the same night, we project that the earliest the show could premiere is Sunday, April 9. Like the rest of Starz’s programming, the series is shifting over from Saturdays in hopes of obtaining a larger ratings footprint.
We’ve certainly heard that there are some concerns out there when it comes to whether or not “Outlander” could actually be hurt by the move, mostly because of competition. Sunday nights, after all, are primary real estate, and at 9:00 p.m. in particular there tend to be two shows that dominate the lion’s share of the ratings in “Game of Thrones” and “The Walking Dead.” Yet, today we’re here to remind you that on this particular year, there is really significantly less to worry about.
“Game of Thrones” – Let’s start by saying that the HBO drama is being pushed back from a spring to summer start, which means that its premiere date could be largely dependent on when “The Leftovers” closes its doors for the season. (It was recently announced that this series will start on HBO in April.) It’s possible that the George R.R. Martin and Diana Gabaldon adaptations will collide somewhat near the end of “Outlander” season 3 in the summer, but it will only be for a few months.
“The Walking Dead” – Meanwhile, the AMC zombie drama typically returns with new episodes at around the second week of February, and it turns for eight weeks. If that is the case, there is a reasonably good chance that the show won’t even overlap at all. It wouldn’t shock us if Starz specifically delayed “Outlander” to April 16 just to steer clear of the competition.
In some ways, you can argue that live ratings don’t even matter for a network like Starz, and therefore the competition against its shows is not altogether important so long as people watch their shows eventually. That may be true, but at the same time stronger live ratings leads to more exposure, and that potentially leads to keep people hooked on the show and drawing new viewers. Live viewers are still important, which is why Starz should do what it can to put “Outlander” in the best position possible to succeed … and we are confident that they will.
Want to get some additional news right now when it comes to “Outlander”? Then be sure to head over to the link here right away! Hopefully, we’ll have some further news pertaining to the series over the course of the coming days. (Photo: Starz.)