It seems like spectators are flocking to it The Penguin.
The HBO series starring Colin Farrell as the infamous DC Comics villain racked up 10.4 million multiplatform viewers for its premiere, which debuted on September 19. That 11-day figure, according to HBO, is surpassing every other current HBO series over the years. a similar time frame, apart from the two largest: House of the Dragon AND The last of us.
Last week, HBO reported it The PenguinNetflix's first episode reached 5.3 million viewers within four days of release, meaning about 5.1 million more people watched it in the following week. Sunday's second episode, meanwhile, garnered 1.6 million viewers across all platforms (including a pair of on-air replays), a 17% improvement over the primetime premiere.
The third season finale of Industry followed The Penguin Sunday with 260,000 viewers in prime time. This is lower than the first series' high of 370,00 set earlier this season, but overall the third season attracted a third more viewers than the second (1.6 million per episode versus 1.2 million ). HBO has already acquired the fourth season of Industry.
The Penguin an HBO series was not initially planned; instead, the offshoot of Matt Reeves' 2022 film The Batman it was supposed to run exclusively on Max, HBO's streaming sibling. As part of a change in branding, however, The Penguin – along with other DC-based dramas Lanterns and the next one Dune: Prophecy, Welcome to Derry AND Harry Potter series — were moved under the HBO Originals umbrella in June, meaning they will air on both Max and HBO cable channels.
It's impossible to say if The Penguin it would have attracted the same number of viewers if it had been exclusively on Max. The series' premiere airing on September 19 attracted 242,000 viewers, about 18% of the primetime total. But the additional linear screenings, along with the imprimatur brought by HBO, likely helped boost viewership, at least to some extent.