It’s so good to be Awkwafina right now. The comedian, actress, and rapper has made become a household name in a relatively short period of time thanks to her appearances in Ocean’s 8, Crazy Rich Asians, and The Farewell and now she can claim some television bragging rights with the premiere of her semi-autobiographical series, Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens.
The series premiere drew a .31 rating among adults 18-49 and 489,000 total viewers for its January 22 debut. This is the network’s highest-rated season one premiere since 2017. Among women 18-49, the premiere is Comedy Central’s best in primetime since 2016. Along with this, the .31 rating is 59% better than the next most recent new-series launch (South Side), and 33% better than The Other Two’s series premiere a year ago.
Further ratings data show that the series premiere was up double digits compared to the prior four-week period in all key demos. In P18-49, it drew a .31 rating, up 23%; M18-49 (.33) +11%; W18-49 (.30) up 40%; P18-34 (.29) up 19%; P25-54 (.39) up 48%. The total viewership of 489,000 viewers was up 59% over the previous four week period as well.
Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens was already renewed for a second season ahead of its premiere but these early numbers indicate the series could have a steady life at Comedy Central beyond that point.
