First on LateNighter: Preliminary ratings are in for Byron Allen’s 11:35 p.m. Comics Unleashed debut on CBS Friday night. As for how the show performed… well, it depends on how you look at it.
According to initial panel-only Nielsen Live+Same Day ratings data, the first half-hour of the show, which was a first-run episode, drew a national audience average of 995,000 total viewers and 116,000 viewers in the 18–49 demo.
The show’s second half-hour—a repeat from September 2025—drew 600,000 total viewers and 55,000 viewers in the demo.
Against the prior night’s Late Show with Stephen Colbert finale—which logged a series high of 6.7 million total viewers and 1.1 million demo viewers by the same ratings measure—Comics Unleashed was down 85% in total viewers and-95% among younger viewers. Versus the previous week’s Late Show repeat in the same slot, the show fell -46% in total viewers and 65% in the demo.
The show’s debut also wasn’t able to beat its 11:35 competitors. A first-run episode of NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon—which aired a half-hour later than usual on the East Coast due to an NBA overrun earlier in the evening—averaged 1.5 million total viewers Friday night and 319,000 viewers in the demo, while a repeat of ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! drew 1.6 million total viewers and 208,000 in the demo.
That’s the national picture. Locally, Allen Media Group is telling a different story.
According to ratings data released by Allen’s company, Comics Unleashed outperformed Fallon and/or Kimmel in more than two dozen local markets Friday night, giving Allen a more favorable set of numbers to tout as his long-running comedy showcase begins its new CBS run.
Whether the show’s ratings performance was affected by Friday being Allen’s 11:35 debut, from Kimmel being in repeats and Fallon airing later than usual, or some combination of the above remains to be seen. Also still to be seen is how many viewers Comics Unleashed and its competitors add once delayed-viewing data comes in over the next several days.
It’s worth noting that Comics Unleashed is produced at a fraction of the cost of a traditional late-night show, and is built on an entirely different financial model. Allen pays CBS for the time and sells the commercial spots on the show to advertisers directly.
Though Friday’s episode marked the 11:35 p.m. debut for Comics Unleashed on CBS, viewers saw an otherwise normal episode of the long-running series. Allen did mark the occasion during the show’s first commercial break, appearing from the show’s set to pay tribute to the late-night figures who came before him—and to call out one of his sponsors, Procter & Gamble, which appeared to subsidize the message.
Allen Media Group’s 12:37am entry, Funny You Should Ask, also made its official CBS debut Friday, coming in second behind a time-delayed Late Night with Seth Meyers.
Complete national ratings charts for Friday May 22, 2026 follow below:
Live+SD ratings (Panel Only, All Viewers 2+)
| Avg Share (%) | Avg Viewers (000s) | Vs Wk Ago | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10:00 PM | |||
|
Gutfeld! (FNC)
| 4.52 | 2,213 | -7% |
| 11:35 PM | |||
|
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Repeat | 5.79 | 1,647 | +24% |
|
COMICS UNLEASHED 1
| 3.28 | 995 | — |
|
COMICS UNLEASHED 2
Repeat | 2.43 | 600 | — |
|
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (NBC)
Aired at 12:07 AM this day | 6.54 | 1,519 | — |
| 12:37 AM | |||
|
FUNNY YOU SHOULD ASK-1
Repeat | 2.35 | 489 | — |
|
FUNNY YOU SHOULD ASK-2
Repeat | 2.46 | 430 | — |
| Late Night with Seth Meyers (NBC) Aired at 1:09 AM this day Repeat | 4.37 | 709 | +11% |
Live+SD ratings (Panel Only, 18-49 demo)
| Avg Share (%) | Avg Viewers (000s) | Vs Wk Ago | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10:00 PM | |||
|
Gutfeld! (FNC)
| 1.51 | 162 | +26% |
| 11:35 PM | |||
|
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Repeat | 3.47 | 208 | -8% |
| Comics Unleashed-1 (CBS) | 1.82 | 116 | — |
| Comics Unleashed-2 (CBS) Repeat | 1.06 | 55 | — |
|
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (NBC)
Aired at 12:07 AM this day | 6.53 | 319 | — |
| 12:37 AM | |||
| Funny You Should Ask (CBS) Repeat | 1.13 | 50 | — |
| Funny You Should Ask-2 (CBS) Repeat | 1.39 | 51 | — |
| Late Night with Seth Meyers (NBC) Aired at 1:09 AM this day Repeat | 4.1 | 139 | +54% |
Ratings Data © The Nielsen Company, used under license.
THIS is the only time I’ll ever admit this, but MAN am I happy Fallon outperformed a CBS show with his new Friday episode
Don’t be surprised if CBS drops Byron after one year if the results indicate the inevitable~ And just cuz Byron gets a late night time slot doesn’t mean he’ll do diddly shit; his show isn’t transformative, he only placates to an audience of 1~ Businessman above all titles, he is the epitome of anodyne~
He paid for one night you idiot. See, here’s your proof right here how you boomers live on here and watching tv yet you don’t know basic facts because you’re too lazy. Instead it’s all about your stupid feelings.
Lmaoooo get fucked Byron Allen.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!
This is funnier than anything Byron’s ever said as a comedian or created as a producer.
Wonder if Eric P. will be emailing this news item to the entire Allen Media Group email list tomorrow.
Oh holy shit this makes me so happy
Fuck you cbs and fuck you too Byron “do you like making money, cbs?” Allen
This DEI comedian actually paid for the slot, while Colbert cost CBS $50 a year in losses. Totally unsustainable and unjustifiable.
Eventually, CBS will pay the price. Hopefully, sooner rather than later. I watched Colbert every night, as well as his finale and I haven’t watched anything on CBS since.
Ditto. I’ve started watching Kimmel. The Saudis are funding the WB Paramount take over. it doesn’t pass the smell test. I’m a WB stockholder and I voted for Netflix. It was the better deal.