Weekly Ratings: Fallon’s Odyssey Week Narrows Kimmel’s Lead

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Jimmy Kimmel Live! held onto first place at 11:35 last week, narrowly fending off The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon as the NBC show returned from a two-week break.

According to Nielsen Live+3 ratings for the week of July 12, 2026, Jimmy Kimmel Live! averaged 1.579 million total viewers and 164,000 adults 18–49, edging The Tonight Show’s 1.456 million viewers and 161,000 adults 18–49. Just 123,000 total viewers—and a mere 3,000 viewers in the key demo—separated the two programs.

Fallon gained 25 percent in total viewers and 10 percent among adults 18–49 compared to the previous week, when the show aired five repeats. Fallon’s return featured an Odyssey-themed week built around Christopher Nolan’s new film, with cast members Tom Holland, Matt Damon, Zendaya, and Lupita Nyong’o appearing across four original episodes, followed by a Friday repeat.

Jimmy Kimmel Live!, meanwhile, fell 14 percent in total viewers and 28 percent in the demo. The ABC show, which was guest-hosted by Ike Barinholtz, aired four original episodes with one repeat, performing below the previous week’s run of episodes hosted by Tiffany Haddish.

At 12:37 a.m., Late Night with Seth Meyers returned from a three-week break with four original episodes and one repeat. The show averaged 927,000 total viewers, up a whopping 52 percent, and 98,000 adults 18–49, up 45 percent.

Those gains put Meyers ahead of ABC’s Nightline in both measures. Airing five original broadcasts, the ABC news program averaged 777,000 total viewers (–16 percent) and 75,000 adults 18–49 (–21 percent).

On CBS, both halves of the network’s Byron Allen-produced late-night block remained in repeats. Averaging its two half-hour telecasts, Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen drew 687,000 total viewers and 70,000 adults 18–49 across the 11:35 p.m. hour.

The show’s first half-hour averaged 821,000 total viewers (flat) and 89,000 adults 18–49 (–12 percent), while its second half-hour averaged 553,000 viewers (–8 percent) and 50,000 adults 18–49 (–36 percent).

Funny You Should Ask averaged approximately 470,000 total viewers and 53,000 adults 18–49 across its two half-hours. Its 12:35 a.m. telecast drew 496,000 viewers (–5 percent) and 57,000 adults 18–49 (–22 percent), while the 1:05 a.m. half-hour averaged 443,000 viewers (–5 percent) and 48,000 adults 18–49 (–25 percent).

Airing three original episodes on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday, FIFA World Cup on FOX After Hours with James Corden averaged 508,000 total viewers (–29 percent) and 113,000 adults 18–49 (–41 percent). Because LateNighter’s ratings weeks run Sunday through Saturday, figures for the show’s Sunday night finale will appear in next week’s report.

On Comedy Central, The Daily Show averaged 1.019 million total viewers (+18 percent) and 186,000 adults 18–49 (+27 percent) across four original episodes—one hosted by Jon Stewart and three by Michael Kosta. The show’s week-over-week gains come with an important caveat: the previous week included only three episodes, all hosted by Ronny Chieng, and did not include Stewart’s Monday broadcast, which typically delivers the show’s largest audience of the week.

At 10 p.m., Fox News’ Gutfeld! aired five original episodes, averaging 2.832 million total viewers (–1 percent) and 175,000 adults 18–49 (+3 percent), while Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live also aired five original episodes, averaging 369,000 total viewers (–2 percent) and 94,000 adults 18–49 (–7 percent).

Complete ratings charts for the week of July 12, 2026, follow below.

Note: Time period listed is the most common airtime for each show.

Live+ 3 Ratings — All Viewers (P2+)

Live+ 3 Ratings — In the Demo (P18-49)

Ratings data © The Nielsen Company, used under license.