FEUD: Bette and Joan is biggest FX premiere since People v. O.J. Simpson

FEUD: Bette and Joan debuted as FX’s most-watched new program premiere since The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, the network revealed today.

On a Live+3 basis, the premiere telecast of FEUD: Bette and Joan (Sunday, March 5) and two encore telecasts delivered 5.17 million Total Viewers, the highest since the premiere of The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story on February 2, 2016 (12 million Total Viewers for premiere telecast and two encores).

The premiere telecast of FEUD: Bette and Joan (10 PM-11:12 PM, 3/5/17) exceeded the premiere telecasts of the new FX series Legion by 16% (3.8 million vs. 3.27 million) and Taboo by 11% (3.8 million vs. 3.43 million) in Total Viewers on a Live+3 basis.

FEUD: Bette and Joan returns Sunday, March 12 at 10 PM ET/PT on FX with Episode 2, “The Other Woman,” described as follows: With production on Baby Jane underway, Bette and Joan form an alliance, but outside forces conspire against them. Teleplay by Tim Minear; directed by Ryan Murphy.

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FEUD: Bette and Joan tells the story of the legendary rivalry between Joan Crawford (Jessica Lange) and Bette Davis (Susan Sarandon) during their collaboration on the Academy Award®-nominated thriller What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? and well after the cameras stopped rolling. The series explores how the two women endured ageism, sexism, and misogyny while struggling to hang on to success and fame in the twilight of their careers.

In addition to Academy Award winners Lange and Sarandon, the cast includes Alfred Molina as the film’s director Robert Aldrich, Stanley Tucci as studio titan Jack Warner, Judy Davis as gossip columnist Hedda Hopper, Jackie Hoffman as Crawford’s housekeeper Mamacita, and Alison Wright as Aldrich’s assistant Pauline. Notable guest stars include Dominic Burgess as Crawford and Davis’ co-star Victor Buono, Catherine Zeta-Jones as film star Olivia de Havilland, Sarah Paulson as Geraldine Page, Kathy Bates as Joan Blondell and Kiernan Shipka as B.D., Bette Davis’ daughter.

FEUD: Bette and Joan is created by Ryan Murphy and Jaffe Cohen & Michael Zam. Ryan Murphy serves as Executive Producer along with Executive Producers Dede Gardner and Plan B Entertainment, Tim Minear and Alexis Martin Woodall. The series is produced by Fox 21 Television Studios.