WWE SmackDown is set to return to the USA Network next week after a five-year stint on FOX, and expectations are high for the blue brand’s future programming. Adding to the excitement, fans have noticed what could be an alternate logo for SmackDown displayed on the USA Network’s website.

This alternate WWE SmackDown logo has not appeared on any of WWE’s promotional materials for the September 13 premiere. This most recent SmackDown on USA ad continue to feature the current logo, further suggesting that the new design may not be finalized.

SmackDown’s return to the USA Network is part of a major $1.4 billion deal with NBCUniversal, set to last five years. In addition to weekly programming, WWE will produce four primetime specials annually for NBC. Reports earlier this week suggest that WWE is preparing to announce its return to NBC primetime within the coming days.

For the remainder of this year, WWE SmackDown’s commentary team will consist of Michael Cole and Corey Graves. In 2025, Pat McAfee will return to WWE programming and will reunite with Michael Cole.

WWE NXT makes its live debut on The CW on Tuesday, October 1, 2024 at 8 p.m. ET.

WWE Raw premieres on Netflix on Monday, January 6, 2025, ending its three-decade run on cable television.

WWE SmackDown will return to the USA Network on September 13 after five years on FOX, a press release from NBC Universal has confirmed. 

It was last year that it was confirmed that SmackDown will return to the USA Network in 2024, ending the blue brand’s five-year tenure on FOX. In the statement, it is confirmed that the first episode back on the USA Network will come this September. 

“Starting in September and through the end of 2024, USA Network will serve as the exclusive linear home of the WWE’s two tentpole franchises, “WWE Monday Night RAW” and “WWE SmackDown,” which returns to the network on Sept. 13 as part of a new multi-year partnership.”

Fans will get just more than WWE SmackDown on the USA Network, as the press release also confirms that a ‘WWE Week’ will commence on September 9. The network will air films from the “Fast and the Furious” franchise starring Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, “Blockers” starring John Cena, and the Peacock documentary “Bray Wyatt: Becoming Immortal. 

The Future of WWE’s Broadcasts

WWE SmackDown isn’t the only show that will soon find itself a new home. This year, WWE NXT will move to the CW Network after years as part of the USA Network. The five-year broadcast deal sees NXT become the latest sports show on the CW as the network also broadcasts ACC football and basketball games airing every Saturday throughout the season and LIV Golf.

The biggest change coming will affect Monday Night Raw, which will leave syndicated broadcast programming and move to Netflix in January 2025. The ten-year deal is estimated to be worth $5 billion and can be shortened or extended depending on how the parties involved feel. Those outside of the U.S. will see Netflix host Raw, SmackDown, WWE NXT, and PLEs. 

WWE is heading into new territory as they prepare to stream Monday Night Raw on Netflix in 2025. The $5 billion deal was made on January 23, with fans curious and skeptical about the brand moving exclusively to streaming. 

While the company plans to move to Monday Night Raw off TV, fans became aware that its deal with USA Network would end in September. WWE not having an agreement in place would’ve left the brand without a home until January 2025 to Netflix. However, TKO Group Holding has announced that they have reached a new deal, a $25 million deal with NBCUniversal, to keep Monday Night Raw on the USA Network for the rest of the year. 

Breaking: WWE announces it as entered into a short term $25 million deal with NBCU to keep Raw on USA Network in Q4 till the start of the Netflix Agreement in January 2025. That means Raw & Smackdown for a brief time at the end of the year will be both on the USA Network. pic.twitter.com/KkSEtLYaEi

— SEScoops (@sescoops) May 8, 2024

TKO shared their 2024 first-quarter results today and revealed that Monday Night Raw would stay on the USA Network for the fourth quarter of 2024. The deal will also allow NBCU Universal to have Monday Night Raw and Friday Night Smackdown on the network later this year. 

It’s unclear if WWE may have considered other possible suitors to host Monday Night RAW later this year. However, this may be a win for fans as both brands will be on one network until Monday Night Raw moves to Netflix. It will also allow fans to slowly transition from cable to streaming to watch their favorite superstars on the Raw brand. 

More On WWE’s Move To Netflix Next Year

WWE’s decision to move to Netflix will be game-changing as they hope to bring the same weekly audience to the streaming service. CBS News’ William Lankford reported earlier this year that Netflix has over 200 million subscribers, with 13.1 million added by the end of 2023.  

Netflix’s decision to add the WWE flagship show will be interesting as it aims to compete with other streaming services, like Amazon Prime Videos, for live sports. While other platforms have a season or games of a sport, Netflix will benefit from having Monday Night Raw every week.  

WWE’s new deal with NBCUniversal has secured the future for the rest of the year. The company will have to figure out if they can get fans to watch their brand on streaming in 2025. However, the $25 million agreement has given them time to get their audience to follow Monday Night Raw’s transition to Netflix.

Since Vince McMahon retired from WWE, the promotion has undergone several changes both on screen and behind the scenes.

With McMahon gone, Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque has replaced him as Head of Creative and replaced McMahon loyalist John Laurinaitis as Head of Talent Relations.

On-screen, there have been several returns, including Johnny Gargano, Dexter Lumis, Hit Row, Dakota Kai, Karrion Kross, and Scarlett.

USA Reacts

For the most part, the changes made to WWE post-Vince McMahon have been met with acclaim from the fans.

According to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful, NBC-Universal and those at the USA Network have also been pleased with the changes.

The report states that the Network is pleased that Raw viewership has improved, after a difficult few years.

Noting that the pandemic changed “everything” one source said they never imagined Raw would drop below two million viewers, particularly on a consistent basis.

Since the changes were implemented, Raw has consistently been over two million viewers.

Another source said they expect the ratings at SmackDown on FOX to increase as well.

One person from the USA Network said that Raw feels more natural, and it has become “appointment viewing,” a term for a show that people make plans to see.

Another longtime USA Network employee said that the relationship between the network and WWE has been very easygoing, but has gotten even better as of late.

That source said they would be surprised if USA didn’t try to renew WWE programming when negotiations begin next year.

A lot is being made about the WWE Raw TV rating situation and now we know who made the call.

Andrew Zarian initially reported that starting on July 18, WWE Raw would be moving on from the PG era and returning to TV-14. As it turns on, the internal memo jumped the gun and a date has yet to be finalized.

It’s been said since that report that there were mixed signals internally regarding a TV rating change within WWE.

As it turns out, this wasn’t even WWE’s call.

USA Network Made TV-14 Rating Decision

Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter is reporting that the USA Network actually made the call to change the Raw TV rating.

Meltzer has expressed his belief that the new rating probably wouldn’t lead to performers blading because the network has been vocal about not wanting blood on the show. With that said, Dave notes that the mentality can quickly change just as it did in the 90s.

The feeling is that there’s probably no chance the show would revert back to how female talents were portrayed in the Attitude Era, especially in this day and age. WWE has also made great strides in building female stars as main eventers.

It was also noted that USA Network initially planned to allow Brock Lesnar’s “sh*t-kicking” line to go through unedited during the July 11 edition of Monday Night Raw.

The line ended up being bleeped out.

The rebranded NXT 2.0 has so far failed to impress fans with the viewership numbers but it appears that USA Network officials are happy with it.

The development brand has been averaging about 600k viewers. Andrew Zarian of the Mat Men podcast recently discussed these numbers.

The wrestling journalist revealed that he recently had a conversation with someone from USA Network. They told him ‘Yeah, we’re fine with the six-somethings.’

He mentioned how the show was in the range of 700k viewers with the slammed roster during the black and gold era of the development brand.

The USA Network doesn’t care if there are more main roster stars making appearances on the show, and they are happy with the current ratings.

WWE made a deal to broadcast NXT on USA Network every Wednesday night in August 2019. The show made its TV debut in September.

• Expect To See More WWE Main Roster Talent On NXT 2.0

After constantly failing to beat AEW’s weekly flagship Dynamite in ratings, the black and yellow brand was moved to Tuesday nights in April 2021.

The September 14, 2021 episode of the show then saw the beginning of the 2.0 era for the brand, with a focus on younger talents and a completely different setup compared to its previous iteration.

The two big SummerSlam returns in Brock Lesnar and Becky Lynch both got involved in feuds concerning the SmackDown brand upon their comeback. It appears that the officials from the USA Network are not very happy about it.

According to Andrew Zarian of the Mat Men podcast, the NBC Universal and USA Network officials are ‘not thrilled’  with the fact that both the returning stars are now on the SmackDown side which airs on Fox.

Zarian noted that the network officials also had issues with Lynch and Lesnar not being booked for the post-SummerSlam edition of Raw.

The idea behind it was that John Cena made appearances on both brands recently while working a feud with Roman Reigns on the blue brand.

Though the WWE officials have assured them that with the WWE draft coming up in October, this situation is only temporary. The network executives are told not to worry as the company has plans to “shuffle the deck.”

There is no word yet on what changes WWE is planning to make to the roster to distribute the star power among both brands equally but we should get a better idea as the draft draws nearer.

Both Becky Lynch and Brock Lesnar are being teased for this Friday’s episode of SmackDown. This will be both the star’s first SmackDown appearance since 2019.

• Backstage SummerSlam Notes: John Cena’s Future, Original Brock Lesnar Plans, Sasha Banks

It was recently confirmed that WWE and USA Network will be moving the NXT program to Tuesday nights starting on April 13. Triple H recently spoke to Joe Otterson of Variety regarding the move.

“We now feel like we’re in a good place where we can move that consistent fanbase over to Tuesdays,” Triple H began. “We believe they’ll follow us. That way we can grow the brand more given the lead in from ‘Monday Night Raw,’ which we’ve seen in the past.”

Something that the company is likely not going to discuss is the ‘Wednesday Night Wars.’

The ‘wars’ saw AEW consistently beat NXT most Wednesdays in the overall rating and also in the key 18-49 demographic.

Triple H Talks NXT on Peacock

It was also confirmed that NXT will be airing on the NBC Peacock streaming service every Wednesday going forward. Triple H also discussed how this will help further the reach of WWE’s Gold brand.

“The ability for us to be on [Peacock], a bigger platform where so many more people have the opportunity to experience it and and to let it grow into something more, is very exciting,” Triple H noted. “And once you sample it? We believe that the product is something that people will stick with and become involved in.”

• WWE Announces NXT Moving To Tuesday Nights Starting April 13th

The move of NXT to Tuesday nights has been a wish of fans over the past few months. With NXT and AEW arguably being some of the best weekly programming in North American pro wrestling; this gives fans the chance to watch both on a live basis going forward.

With the news recently coming out that WWE’s NXT brand could wind up on the USA Network, fans are wondering what this could mean for the black-and-gold shows future.

Rumors persisted for weeks that NXT may be heading to FS1, joining SmackDown in its move to FOX in October. However, according to Dave Meltzer of F4WOnline.com, the potential move to USA Network isn’t inspired by money. 

Instead, it supposedly revolves around Vince McMahon’s competitive nature and fan recognition. He allegedly believes that the USA Network gives him a better shot against competition from All Elite Wrestling (AEW).

Network Familiarity

Meltzer stated that Vince McMahon’s reasoning relates to wrestling fans ingrained familiarity with the USA Network.

He argued that fans are simply not used to FS1, which is more familiar to MMA and UFC fans. Meltzer explained that although people would naturally become adjusted in only two or three weeks, the instant network recognition apparently makes a significant difference to WWE.

It was stressed that if WWE does bring NXT to the USA Network, there is no way that Vince McMahon would be hands-off with the show.

The push for NXT to find a new home may see the show leave WWE’s own streaming service entirely. WWE’s decision to do so reportedly lies in the promotion wanting to actively counter-programme against AEW’s TNT October debut.

In the past few days, a pitch was allegedly made that would see WWE reportedly move NXT to the USA Network. This follows rumors that the show would be appearing on FS1, alongside SmackDown’s debut on FOX.

According to PWInsider, the promotion’s plans for the black-and-gold brand would see NXT extend to a live two-hour weekly show. Episodes would still take place primarily in Full Sail University, Florida.

Notably, the proposed plans would see NXT’s television debut occur on October 2nd—the same day that All Elite Wrestling launches on TNT.

NXT Runtime

Dave Meltzer of F4WOnline.com also commented on the possibility of NXT going live with USA Network.

He explained that WWE fans are more familiar with watching USA over FS1, which works in USA Network’s favor. He also questioned whether WWE would broadcast live every week or bi-weekly. Apparently, both options have been discussed, but, ultimately, there will be a live element incorporated going forward.

It’s speculated that if WWE doesn’t remove NXT from the WWE Network, then the show could extend to three hours.

If this were to happen, two hours would take place live on the USA Network. The third, presumably, would broadcast via the WWE Network. 

If, however, WWE decided to remove NXT completely from their WWE Network lineup, the question becomes: how are Network subscribers going to feel about it, and will it harm their subscriber count?

– USA Network made a major error during last night’s episode of Monday Night RAW in some parts of the country. After RAW General Manager Kurt Angle announced that a Triple Threat match for the Intercontinental Championship will be happening between The Miz, Seth Rollins, and Finn Balor at WrestleMania 34; RAW abruptly went off the air.

USA Network then began to air the next episode of “UNSOLVED: Who killed Biggie and Tupac?” Many fans missed Paul Heyman’s promo with Roman Reigns that closed the show. USA Network eventually realized the mistake and cut back to the live feed in Milwaukee while Heyman was in the middle of his promo.

– Also on last night’s RAW saw “Woken” Matt Hardy challenge Bray Wyatt to meet him at his Hardy Family Compound. The footage shown of the compound looked stunningly similar to that which was used in IMPACT Wrestling. Fans speculated on social media as to whether or not it was borrowed footage from the old IMPACT segments. Reby Hardy took to Twitter to shut those rumors down, claiming she filmed those clips herself last Tuesday:

https://twitter.com/RebyHardy/status/970894572204118017?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ringsidenews.com%2F2018%2F03%2F06%2Fwwe-recycle-footage-hardy-compound-segment-raw%2F

– Backstage interviewer Renee Young was noticeably absent from last night’s RAW. A fan took to Twitter to ask Renee why she wasn’t there and she admitted that she was sick and had to miss the show. Young confirmed she’ll be at Fastlane and everything else after that:

Ok but where is @ReneeYoungWWE tho #Raw

— alexis (@lovelexe3) March 6, 2018

I had to shelf myself this week. ????? but i’ll be at Fastlane and everything else after! Thanks for love you guys ???????? https://t.co/rpbDziaArg

— Renee Paquette (@ReneePaquette) March 6, 2018

This past week on USA Network was billed as WWE Week and NXT was broadcast on the network for the very first time. The show was headlined by Aleister Black taking on Adam Cole and also featured appearances from the NXT Champion Andrade ‘Cien’ Almas, The Authors of Pain and NXT Women’s Champion Ember Moon.

The number for the show was in the region of 841,000. This equates to being the 22nd highest rated cable show of the night and the highest rated programme on all of USA Network on Wednesday night.

As a comparison, the more established Total Divas show on the E! Network drew 517,000 viewers on Wednesday night, gaining the 43rd highest cable spot.

USA Network issued the following press release today touting their success in 2016, largely due to WWE programming:

USA NETWORK SET TO MAKE TV HISTORY AS #1 AD-SUPPORTED ENTERTAINMENT CABLE NETWORK IN TOTAL VIEWERS FOR 11TH CONSECUTIVE YEAR

NEW YORK – December 15, 2016 – USA Network is on track to end 2016 as the most watched ad-supported cable entertainment network for an 11th consecutive year — the longest streak at #1 for a cable or broadcast network in the history of Nielsen metered measurement. Driven by hit new and returning series including COLONY, QUEEN OF THE SOUTH, SHOOTER, MR. ROBOT, SUITS and CHRISLEY KNOWS BEST and two nights per week of live action with WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW and WWE SMACKDOWN LIVE, USA delivered an average of 1.68MM total viewers P2+ for the year.

In 4th Quarter 2016, USA is also on track to be up +5% vs. last year — one of only three Top 10 networks to show year over year ratings growth among the key 18-49 demo. “We are so proud to end 2016 at #1 for the 11th straight year,” said Chris McCumber, President, Entertainment Networks for NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. “USA’s enduring success is a testament to not only our amazing team, but to a strong programming lineup that continues to deliver a devoted audience at scale year after year.”

HIGHLIGHTS FOR 2016 INCLUDE:

· USA was the #1 cable entertainment network on Monday nights with P18-49 and P2+, with the three-hour live WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW garnering an average of 3.7MM total viewers P2+.

· Since moving to Tuesday nights in July, WWE SMACKDOWN LIVE saw double-digit increases: +25% P18-49 and +12% P2+, helping USA rank as the #1 cable entertainment network in its timeslot in those demos. Versus year-ago ratings, SMACKDOWN is up +46% among P18-49 and +17% among P2+.

· Three new USA series — COLONY, SHOOTER and QUEEN OF THE SOUTH — were top 10 scripted first season dramas on ad-supported cable for P2+, with COLONY and SHOOTER also top 10 among P18-49.

· COLONY was USA’s #1 new series in 2016 among P18-49, P25-54 and P2+, delivering an average of 2.5MM P2+.

· Since its mid-November debut, SHOOTER is USA’s #1 new scripted series year to date with P18-34, and is a top five ad-supported cable first season drama among both P18-34 and M18-49.

· In addition to being a top 10 ad-supported cable first season drama with P25-54 and P2+, QUEEN OF THE SOUTH is also the most multicultural original series in the history of USA among P18-49 with over 50% of the audience either Hispanic or African American.

· Returning series CHRISLEY KNOWS BEST, SUITS and MR. ROBOT continued to deliver in 2016:

· CHRISLEY KNOWS BEST’s fourth season was its most watched ever among both P18-49 and P2+. The original unscripted series delivered 1.4MM P18-49 and 2.80MM in P2+, increases of +7% and +6% respectively over Season 3.

· SUITS was the #1 cable entertainment series on Wednesday nights during both the show’s winter and summer runs in P18-49 and P2+ and was a top 20 ad-supported cable entertainment series in P2+.

· USA’s award-winning series MR. ROBOT delivered a younger and more affluent audience in its second season, lowering its median age by four years and becoming the network’s most upscale original series ever. To date, Season 2 has had more than 16MM unduplicated viewers and received an additional 12MM views on non-linear platforms.

Note: All linear data below is YTD (12/28/15-11/20/16), L7 (000) Press Prime unless otherwise noted. 2015 is 12/29/14-12/17/15. Top ad-supported cable entertainment show rankers are based on programs (new and returning shows) and excludes repeats and specials. USA original series rankers exclude wrestling. 3+ telecasts with exception of bullets that incorporate Shooter (1+). Program rankers for the night (8-11pm) or timeslot include all airings for programs, including repeats and specials. All digital data is Omniture, 2016 year to date (1/1/2016-12/6/2016), FY2015. Mr. Robot non-linear is Omniture, Rentrak, and Xfinity Portal.

– As noted last week, Vader was involved in a serious car accident last Tuesday that left him trapped upside down for more than 30 minutes while unconscious. Vader tweeted this photo of his wrecked car, noting that he rolled over twice.

Rolled it over twice I was loke a giant penatta That bigdent is where my head was A very thanful Vader Time pic.twitter.com/hQ0buFnVQs

— Big Van Vader (@itsvadertime) November 14, 2016

– A WrestleMania 33 online ticket pre-sale will be held this Wednesday at 10 AM ET. The pre-sale password is WWEFAN.

https://twitter.com/wrestlemania/status/798238995310383104

– Here’s the official logo for WWE’s new 205 Live cruiserweight series, which premieres on the WWE Network next Tuesday November 29th following SmackDown Live on the USA Network.

USA Network President Chris McCumber recently spoke with Variety about live programming and the addition of WWE SmackDown to the network beginning in 2016.

“WWE is such an iconic American brand, it feels thematically right to have their two biggest properties on USA Network,” McCumber said. “Having more live programing is a good thing for this network. Having Smackdown and doubling down on WWE is important to us. Partnering with NBC Sports Group to bring Stanley Cup playoff hockey to USA is important move for us. You’ll likely see over the next year more announcements about live sports on USA.”

McCumber was also asked if he worries that the non-WWE sports audience will only come for games.

“(Live sports) helps increase the reach of the network,” he said. “You have a brand-new audience coming to you and one that is a very passionate audience. Right now one of the most important things to do in media is to find passionate niches of fans, whether it’s in sports or original programing, and program and market to them. The NHL and WWE have some of the most passionate fan bases out there. It really grows the whole pie for us.”

Check out the complete interview at Variety.com.

• Former WWE Star Says He Has Beef With CM Punk Over Eve Torres!

The Tuesday, December 16th special live edition of WWE SmackDown on the USA Network scored a final cable rating of 1.51, according to Nielsen Media Research. The number was down a considerable amount from the previous week’s taped airing in the usual Friday slot on SyFy, which drew a 1.74 final rating.

Tuesday’s SmackDown “Super Show” averaged 2.027 million viewers, which was also down quite a bit from the average of 2.531 million viewers for last week’s show in the usual time slot.

USA Network issued the following press release this week …

USA NETWORK CONTINUES UNPRECEDENTED RATINGS STREAK WITH 9TH CONSECUTIVE YEAR AS #1 IN CABLE IN TOTAL VIEWERS

USA Ranks #1 Among Women in 18-49 And 25-54

WWE Powers USA To #1 In Cable Entertainment On Monday Nights for 2014 In All Key Demos

CHRISLEY KNOWS BEST Is A Top 20 New Cable Reality Series In Key Demos

NEW YORK – December 18, 2014 – USA Network will finish the year as the most watched ad-supported cable entertainment network for an unprecedented 9th consecutive year. Fueled by a strong stable of original series, the powerhouse WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW, and top-rated acquired series, USA’s winning streak continued with 2.14MM total viewers P2+, 7% higher than the closest competitive cable entertainment network.

USA is also cable’s top-performer with women, ranking #1 for the year in F18-49 (486,000, +8% over its closest competitor) and F25-54 (500,000, +8%). USA has been #1 in F18-49 since 2005 and in F25-54 since 2006—both unprecedented streaks among ad-supported networks.

“In an increasingly competitive landscape, maintaining our leadership position is a true feat and a testament to our quality programming,” said Chris McCumber, president of USA Network. “2014 was also a financial success for the network, as we once again achieved our most profitable year ever. I am excited to build on this momentum in 2015, as we roll out more new dramas than ever before, starting with the much-anticipated event series DIG.”

WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW – the most-watched, regularly scheduled program on cable, 52 weeks a year, delivered 4.68MM total viewers P2+, 2.15MM P25-54, and 2.08MM P18-49, making USA #1 Monday nights in 2014 for all three categories among cable entertainment networks. RAW made USA the #1 entertainment network in all of television Monday nights for M18-34.

Suits was among the year’s top 20 scripted series on cable, delivering 1.79MM P18-49, 1.95MM P25-54, and 4.37MM total viewers P2+. SIRENS was cable’s #1 new ad-supported comedy in 2014 in P25-54 (870,000). SIRENS returns for its second season premiere with a double dose of half-hour episodes on Tuesday, January 27 at 10/9c, followed by the continuation of the fourth season of Suits with all new episodes on Wednesday, January 28 at 10/9c.

The network’s buzzy, breakout reality series CHRISLEY KNOWS BEST ranks as a top 20 new cable reality series in 2014 in P18-49 and P25-54. The series debuted with a strong first season in April and was swiftly renewed for a second season, which aired its finale last night. In L7 measurements, season 2 to-date is averaging 1.17MM P18-49 (+24% over Season 1), 1.14MM P25-54 (+30%), 590,000 P18-34 (+7%), and 2.18MM total viewers P2+ (+29%). Season three will start production in the new year.

USA has three of the top acquired series in cable with Modern Family, NCIS and LAW & ORDER: SVU. SVU and NCIS are the top two acquired dramas on cable among P18-49, P25-54, P18-34, and total viewers P2+. Modern Family, which delivered a much younger and upscale audience to the network, was one of the year’s top ten acquired series among P18-49, P25-54, and P18-34.

USA recently renewed original dramas GRACELAND, Suits, SATISFACTION and Royal Pains to return in summer 2015; a second season for comedy PLAYING HOUSE; and a third season for the reality series CHRISLEY KNOWS BEST, to return spring 2015.

The network will premiere DIG on March 5, 2015. This thrilling ten episode event series is from executive producers Tim Kring (“Heroes”) and Gideon Raff (“Homeland”), and stars Golden Globe nominee Jason Isaacs (“Awake”) and Emmy Award-winner Anne Heche (“Save Me”). COMPLICATIONS, from Burn Notice creator Matt Nix, will bow this summer – an edge-of-your-seat drama about a reluctant hero, whose life is forever changed after making the split-second decision to intervene in a drive-by shooting to save a little boy’s life. Additionally, USA has a strong drama pipeline, with five pilots currently in production.

Note: Data reflects the most up-to-date M-Su 8-11p time period data with all DVR playback information available at this time, which includes Live+7 for all possible dates, Live+3 for dates when Live+7 is not available and Live+Same for dates when Live+3 is not available.

The Monday, December 15th, post-TLC edition of WWE RAW on the USA Network scored a final cable rating of 2.66, according to Nielsen Media Research. By comparison, the show drew the same rating as the TLC “go-home” and Slammy Awards themed show the previous week, as that show as well delivered a 2.66 final number.

As noted on Tuesday, this week’s RAW averaged 3.521 million viewers, which was down from the average of 3.70 million viewers that the show drew the previous week.

– In addition to “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon,” The Rock will be appearing on Kelly & Michael on Tuesday and Conan O’Brien on Thursday to promote the release of his new film, “Hercules.”

– WWE added the following video to their official YouTube channel today, which features a behind-the-scenes look at United States Champion Sheamus’ guest-starring role on the USA Network series “Royal Pains,” which premieres Tuesday night.

– Sheamus will be a guest star on this coming Tuesday night’s edition of “Royal Pains” on the USA Network. Below is a preview of the show.

– The Rock recently posted the above Hercules movie clip on his official Instagram account:

“I asked the prop department to lock me in with real steel chains that I couldn’t break, so the performance would be real. When HERCULES finally accepts his fate of being the son of Zeus, it’s THE epic moment of the mythology – and our movie. We shot this scene 8 times – I blacked out every time. Down to my knees. Well worth the fun pain.. this moment is iconic. Im excited for you to see it… #HercDontLikeBlackingOut #HappilyDoItAgain #HERCULESMovie”

– It appears as though USA Network is in a position to keep WWE RAW on their station if they so desire, regardless of how bidding goes with other networks. A recent Ad Age article on Bonnie Hammer noted that USA Network’s pure profit has topped $1 billion in the past two years.

It should be noted that most in the industry, and those within WWE as well, are all of the belief that WWE will be staying put on the USA Network.

– The following is the latest edition of “SmackDown Fallout,” which features Tamina Snuka.

– The new Jim Ross “Ross Report” podcast is already having great success. After only one show, JR’s podcast is already the number one ranked Sports & Recreation podcast on iTunes for the U.S., U.K. Canada and Australia. In overall podcasts, it’s number two in the U.K., number three in the U.S., number five in Australia and number seven in Canada.

– The latest video blog from Cody Rhodes and Brandi Rhodes (aka Eden) is now available. You can check it out at WWE.com.

– It was announced today that the USA Network will be airing a one-hour special for the WWE Hall Of Fame ceremony on Monday, April 7th at 11:05pm E.T. The special will air the night after WrestleMania XXX. The full ceremony will air live on the WWE Network on Saturday, April 5th at 9pm E.T.

– The current plan for this year’s WrestleMania XXX “Kickoff” pre-show is to have it run for one hour in length, as opposed to the usual 30-minute pay-per-view “Kickoff” specials. With a one hour pre-show, this would mean the event as a whole would run approximately five hours in total.

– WWE is continuing their effort to convince their television broadcast partners that the WWE Network will raise WWE’s overall popularity, thus increase their television ratings, whether it be the USA Network, Sky TV, or any others.

The USA Network recently issued the following to promote next week’s edition of WWE RAW:

WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW – 8/7c

The Superstars and Divas from the World Wrestling Entertainment® Universe take the stage live in front of thousands in attendance at The Richmond Coliseum in Richmond, VA and the millions of fans watching at home. MONDAY NIGHT RAW continues to be the most watched regularly scheduled year-round program on basic cable television. RAW Superstars include John Cena, CM Punk, AJ Lee, Daniel Bryan, Kane, The Miz, Eve and Zack Ryder.

USA Network issued the following press release today:

USA IS THE #1 CABLE NETWORK FOR AN UNPRECEDENTED 29TH CONSECUTIVE QUARTER

Powerful Portfolio of Originals, WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW and Syndicated Series Garners Success for the Network

GRACELAND is One of the Top New Cable Dramas of the Summer

NEW YORK – September 23, 2013 – USA is pacing to win 3Q13 for an eighth consecutive third quarter in all key demos, as well an unprecedented 29th consecutive quarter as the #1 ad-supported cable entertainment network in prime among total viewers, beating the nearest competitor by double-digits in that demo.

USA was the #1 ad-supported cable network for the eighth third quarter in a row among P18-49 (1.12 million, +13% more than #2 TBS), P25-54 (1.16 million, +22% more than #2 TBS) and total viewers (2.97 million, +18% more than #2 DSNY) for 3Q13. USA also delivered the quarter’s top P18-34 audience (554,000, +3% more than #2 TBS).

3Q13 marks the 29th consecutive quarter that USA has been the #1 ad-supported cable entertainment network in total viewers.

USA’s win was driven by the network’s powerful slate of originals – Suits, Burn Notice, GRACELAND, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs and Necessary Roughness – each averaging over 3 million total viewers, 1.5 million P25-54, 1 million P18-49 and half a million P18-34, as well as the mighty WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW and the most-watched “off-net” series on cable, NCIS and LAW & ORDER: Special Victims Unit.

Freshman drama GRACELAND was one of the top new scripted shows on cable in P18-49 for the summer, as well as television’s top scripted series with original episodes Thursdays in P18-34. When the show aired on Thursdays at 10pm, USA was behind only ABC and NBC in all of television in delivering P18-49, P25-54 and P18-34 as well as being the most watched network on cable in total viewers.

The Emmy-award nominated drama Burn Notice had USA’s second most watched series finale ever (only behind MONK), among P18-49, P25-54 and total viewers.

WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW continued to dominate in 3Q13 averaging over 2 million in the demos and nearly 4.5 million total viewers.

NCIS and LAW & ORDER: Special Victims Unit were the top two acquired dramas in prime this summer and the only ones to deliver over 2 million total viewers (NCIS 2.59 million / SVU 2.08 million) as well as being the #1 acquired dramas for P18-49 (649,000 / 783,000), P25-54 (775,000 / 756,000) and P18-34 (279,000 / 443,000).

USA’s fourth quarter brings the season five premiere of White Collar on its new night and time, Thursday, October 17 at 9/8, as well as the final six episodes of Covert Affairs season four, also on its new night and time at 10/9c. On Friday, November 1, just in time for the holidays, the reality series event IT TAKES A CHOIR premieres, hosted by the dapper and charismatic British sensation Gareth Malone. And on Sunday, December 15, a holiday treat that fans of the hit show Psych have been highly anticipating, a special two-hour Psych: THE MUSICAL.

Note: Data reflect time period data with the most current combination of Live+7 (7/1-9/8), Live+3 (9/9-9/18) and Live+SD (9/19-9/21); program data are the most current combination of Live+7 (7/1-9/8) and Live+SD (9/9-9/19). Exception: Burn Notice 2nd best series finale claim LS.

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