"SHADES OF BLUE" CAPTURES NBC'S THIRD-BIGGEST L+3 VIEWER INCREASE EVER FOR A SERIES PREMIERE

GROWS BY +4.0 MILLION VIEWERS IN L+3, MOVES AHEAD OF "AMERICAN IDOL" AS LAST THURSDAY'S #2 MOST-WATCHED BROADCAST

The Jan. 7 premiere of "Shades of Blue" has grown by +58% in adult 18-49 rating going from "live plus same day" to "live plus three day" results from Nielsen Media Research (from a 1.81 to a 2.86) and by nearly +4.0 million persons in total viewers (8.6 million vs. 12.5 million).

Among NBC new series premieres, "Shades of Blue" delivered the #3 biggest L+3 increase ever in total viewers (3.961 million), behind only "Blindspot" (4.587 million) and "The Blacklist" (+4.362 million).

The L+3 viewership of 12.5 million moves "Shades" ahead of that night's Thursday season premiere of "American Idol" (11.8 million in L+3), making "Shades of Blue" the night's #2 most-watched telecast on the Big 4 networks.

The 3.961 million increase was also the night's #2 biggest lift among primetime shows on the broadcast networks, narrowly behind CBS's "Big Bang Theory" (+4.031 million).