R.J. Decker Sets a 5-Year Record for ABC in Just 1 Week

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The new crime drama, R.J. Decker, has quickly become a big success for the network since its recent debut. It’s even given ABC its highest ratings in over five years.

The series premiere of R.J. Decker drew 3.69 million viewers last Tuesday, making it ABC’s most-watched 10 PM drama since the debut of Big Sky in November 2020. These numbers are also higher than the premieres of Will Trent and High Potential, which also aired at 10 PM. Plus, R.J. Decker performed exceptionally well following High Potential, retaining 73% more viewers than any previous show in that timeslot.

R.J. Decker Has Been Dominant on Streaming

As a big movie and TV fan, I’ve been following the numbers for the new show R.J. Decker, and they’re seriously impressive! It’s really taken off with viewers. In just six days, over 11.64 million people tuned in across ABC, Hulu, and other digital platforms. That was enough to make it the most-watched show on Hulu and Disney+ for several days straight. It’s still early, but this premiere is a fantastic sign for the show’s future – a really strong start, to say the least!

The TV series R.J. Decker is based on Carl Hiaasen’s novel Double Whammy and was created for ABC by Robert Doherty. Scott Speedman stars as R.J. Decker, a former convict and photographer who reinvents himself as a private investigator in South Florida. The cast also includes Jaina Lee Ortiz as Emi Ochoa, the woman responsible for R.J.’s past imprisonment; Kevin Rankin as Wish Aiken, R.J.’s old cellmate who now owns a bar; Adelaide Clemens as Catherine Delacroix, R.J.’s ex-wife and a journalist; and Bevin Bru as Mel Abreu, Catherine’s wife and a detective.

Scott Speedman Saw the Potential in R.J. Decker

Speedman described his initial reaction to the first episode of the series as incredibly promising. He told Vulture, ‘I immediately thought, if we can make this work, we’ll have a hit.’ He was particularly impressed with the quality of the pilot, noting how difficult it is to write and produce a strong first episode. He feels fortunate that everything came together so successfully.

The actor explained how the pilot for R.J. Decker successfully blended comedy with other elements. He said, “I’ve been working for a long time, and I really felt this one would stand out. After meeting the cast and doing a table read, I thought, ‘This could really work!’”

Watch new episodes of R.J. Decker every Tuesday at 10 PM on ABC. You can also stream them on Hulu starting the next day.

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2026-03-11 03:35