Discovery miniseries “Harley and the Davidsons” crossed the finish line with an average of 4.4 million viewers across its three nights, once live +3 day viewership is factored in, making the motorcycle drama the most watched single-network cable miniseries in more than three years, since History’s “The Bible.”
According to the cable network, “Harley” was Discovery’s most-watched series ever, excluding documentaries, and the highest rated freshman series among men aged 25-54. The project was the first miniseries commissioned by Rich Ross in his role as Group President for Discovery, Animal Planet and Science, emphasizing a push towards more scripted fare on the traditionally reality-driven network.
“We are really pleased that so many shared the wild ride of ‘Harley and the Davidsons.’ I can’t thank Raw Television and John Goldwyn enough for bringing this story roaring to life,” Ross said.
“Harley and the Davidsons” aired over three consecutive nights and stood as the top cable program in persons and men 25-54, and men 18-49 across all three nights, excluding sports. On Monday, Sept. 5, the miniseries notched a 2.23 rating in P25-54 and 4.36 million total viewers in live +3 ratings, with a 2.17 rating on Tuesday and 4.41 million viewers, and a 2.11 rating and a steady 4.41 million total viewers on Wednesday. The miniseries also drove Discovery to its highest-rated Monday-Wednesday total since December 2012, not counting Shark Week. When the premieres and encores were taken into account, the show reached a total of 14.73 million viewers.
The miniseries starred Michiel Huisman as Walter Davidson, Robert Aramayo as William “Bill” Harley and Bug Hall as Arthur Davidson. Other cast members included Stephen Rider, Jessica Camacho, Daniel Coonan, Annie Read, Wilson Bethel, Dougray Scott, Gabe Luna, Alex Shaffer and newcomers Essa O’Shea and Sean Scully. “Harley and the Davidsons” was penned by Evan Wright, Seth Fisher and Nick Schenk.
