Fox News's Bill Hemmer had more viewers for the debut of Bill Hemmer Reports over the time slot's previous show, which was hosted by Shepard Smith.

Monday's premiere of Bill Hemmer Reports had 1.8 million viewers, which was up 37% from the 2019 average of Smith's old show, Shepard Smith Reporting, the Hill reported, citing Nielsen Media Research. Hemmer also topped the competing programs on other cable networks.

In the key 25-54 age demographic, Hemmer had 269,000 viewers, which was good for a 34% increase from Smith's average last year. Smith abruptly left the network in October, and Fox had a litany of fill-in hosts until it announced Hemmer as the full-time replacement in December.

“As a journalist, l am extremely grateful for this opportunity," Hemmer said at the time the announcement was made. "2020 will undoubtedly be a year of great significance. Leading our breaking news division with a signature hour has enormous value to me, personally, and to our audience. We’ve got a fantastic team here, and I am excited to get to work.”

Hemmer's first show featured interviews with Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, President Trump's campaign manager Brad Parscale, and Michael Bloomberg's campaign manager Kevin Sheekey.

Hemmer had hosted America's Newsroom since its inception and has previously co-hosted the show with Megyn Kelly, Martha MacCallum, and Shannon Bream, all of whom ended up having their own shows later on. The network has tapped Ed Henry to replace Hemmer on America's Newsroom.