The numbers are in and despite the major hype leading to the premiere of A.D: The Bible Continues on NBC, the spinoff series still failed to match the success of its predecessor.
A.D. The Bible Continues was developed by the same team behind the surprise megahit The Bible miniseries to tell the story after Christ's crucifixion and resurrection. The series continues to tackle the first 10 chapters of the Book of Acts.
Along with an extensive promo, producers Mark Burnett and Roma Downey promised audiences a more extravagant and unique approach to infuse more thrills and excitement into the familiar Bible stories.
However, after it opened to mixed reviews, the show now only averages 7.38 million viewers based on its first four episodes. The figures are a far cry from the 11.4 million average viewers who tuned in for The Bible in 2013, according to data from TV Series Finale.
Since its premiere last Easter, the numbers have also continued to drop every week from the 9.7 million who originally watched the first episode. Only 5.72 million viewers tuned in for the April 26 episode entitled The Wrath.
"Indeed, the truth is that since its Easter launch, NBC's A.D: The Bible Continues has failed to attract nearly as many followers as its predecessor. If the series were to go head-to head against the History channel's epic miniseries, The Bible, then A.D. would be losing by a whopping 32%," The New York Daily News reported.
It can be recalled that Burnett and Downey moved to NBC from History in a bid to draw in more audience share for their epic sequel.
"...many people don't have cable. They can't afford cable. And a lot of people were upset to not be able to see it (The Bible). A.D. is the story of the birth of a faith that has gone from 12 apostles to 2.5 billion people. This is a subject that should be on broadcast television," Burnett said in an AdWeek article.
