TV ratings: ‘Voice’ tops ‘Bachelor’ finale; ‘Believe’ opens solid

NBC’s “The Voice” beat the 18th-season finale of ABC’s “The Bachelor” in the ratings Monday night, according to early numbers from Nielsen.

Juan Pablo Galavis’ “Bachelor” run came to an end, wooing fewer viewers than last year’s finale. The reality series’ season closer averaged 9.6 million viewers over two hours, with a rating of 3.2 among key 18-to-49-year-olds, Nielsen said.

In the advertiser-desired young-adults demographic, “The Bachelor” was down about 9% from last spring’s finale, which faced “The Biggest Loser” on NBC instead of “The Voice.”

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However, ABC still had the top-rated show in 18-49 with the 10 p.m. “The Bachelor: After the Final Rose” special, which drew a 3.8, beating “The Voice’s” 3.7 in the preliminary numbers. “After the Rose” was steady with last year’s comparable special.

“The Voice” was the most-watched telecast in prime time, with 13.6 million viewers overall. Its key demographic score fell 18% from last week.

NBC followed the popular singing competition with the launch of its new fantasy series “Believe” from J.J. Abrams and “Gravity” director Alfonso Cuaron. “Believe” took off with 10.7 million viewers and a rating of 2.7 in 18-49, a solid hold from the big “Voice” lead-in, and matching last week’s episode of “The Blacklist” in the time slot.

CBS felt the pressure from “The Bachelor,” as both “How I Met Your Mother” and “Mike & Molly” fell 18% week-to-week to a 2.7 and a 1.8, respectively. “Intelligence” rose a tick from its last episode, to a 1.3.

On Fox, “Bones” returned to Monday night and rose 6% from its last original episode, to a 1.7, while the Kevin Bacon thriller “The Following” slipped 6% to a 1.5.

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