The show has finally premiered this past week to very strong pilot ratings! The show aired with a 2.8 rating and 6.96 million viewers in its 9:30pm time slot on Tuesday. However it is very unlikely that the show can credit the strong premiere to itself. It is far more likely that the show received a halo effect from a little revival known as “Roseanne”.

“Roseanne” premiered on ABC from 8-9pm on Tuesday night with the strongest ratings all season except for the post Super Bowl “This is Us” episode. The show premiered with a 5.1 rating and 18.16 million viewers. So strong that ABC has already renewed the show for a second season and re aired the premiere later in the week.

Other shows that have had previous weeks of ratings to compare to on ABC certainly saw a boost on Tuesday which is why it is very likely that “Splitting Up Together” received a strong premiere from Roseanne’s  strong viewership just continuing to tune into ABC following the show. What will be important to watch in the coming weeks will be whether or not this halo effect continues, if it diminishes, and what happens to the ratings of “Splitting Up Together”