'Game of Thrones' Finale Sets
New Ratings Record 19.3 million viewers tuned in for the series'
final episode ever on Sunday night. 'The Iron Throne' broke the record
set by last week's episode, 'The Bells,'
which had 18.4 million viewers. 13.6 million people watched the initial
broadcast on HBO at 9 p.m. on Sunday. That broke the previous HBO record of
13.4 million viewers for the Season 4
premiere of 'The Sopranos' in 2002. The final season of 'Game of Thrones'
has averaged 44.2 million viewers
per episode, including delayed viewing. The viewership numbers are huge for
any cable or network TV standard. The series finale of 'The Big Bang Theory,' which
aired on CBS this week, had 18 million viewers.