While MCU fans were seemingly excited about the Hawkeye series coming to Disney Plus, it appears that the praise didn't actually translate into high ratings. The Hawkeye series got the lowest ratings for its two-episode premiere of any Marvel Studios series that's premiered on the streaming service.
Hawkeye stars Jeremy Renner as the titular character, even if he's rarely if ever called that in the MCU movies. Renner is paired with Hailee Steinfeld, who plays the role of Kate Bishop. The pair are tasked with taking on a bevy of baddies during Clint Barton's Christmastime trek to New York City for what was supposed to be some R&R.
While the combination of Renner and Steinfeld was considered a powerful pairing by many in the industry, it has so far failed to generate eyeballs on Hawkeye. According to Deadline, the first episode of the new series had 1.5 million viewers over the Wednesday to Sunday period. That number puts it squarely behind the last Marvel Studios series to hit Disney Plus in Loki. Using the Samba TV rating system that measures 3 million U.S. households and what they watch on streaming over a five-minute increment, Loki grabbed 2.5 million viewers for its debut. That means Hawkeye saw a 40 percent drop in comparison.
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Perhaps even worse news for the new series is that it lost about 200,000 viewers from the first episode to the second. Keep in mind that this isn't a weekly drop-off but an instantaneous one since the first two episodes launched at the same time. Roughly 200,000 people saw the premiere and decided it wasn't worth watching the follow-up for one reason or another.
While Loki might be the gold standard for ratings when it comes to MCU programs on Disney Plus, Hawkeye also trailed several other Marvel Studios series that didn't do quite as well with their debuts. Renner and Steinfeld's show's debut was also behind Falcon and the Winter Soldier, which nabbed 1.8 million viewers, and WandaVision, which was previously the lowest debut with 1.6 million.
Despite the low initial ratings, Hawkeye does have the makings of a show that could turn it around and win over more viewers. Critics have given the Disney Plus program a 93 percent fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and the streaming service certainly has plenty of subscribers who might decide to give the series a go now that it's out. It's also worth noting that the first two episodes debuted a day before what was a long Thanksgiving weekend for most American homes. It's possible family time and shopping took precedence over viewing.
A new episode of Hawkeye launches on Disney Plus every Wednesday.
Source: Deadline, Rotten Tomatoes