HBO’s Behind the Candelabra, which aired Sunday, garnered high ratings to match the critical acclaim it received at the Cannes Film Festival. With 2.4 million viewers at 9 PM, the Liberace biopic was the best-rated HBO original film since 2004’s Something the Lord Made.
The film gained a total audience of 3.5 million for the night, with 1.1 million tuning in during its second run at 11 PM. TV viewing generally declines during Memorial Day weekend, making Candelabra’s ratings all the more impressive.
Starring Michael Douglas and Matt Damon and directed by Steven Soderbergh—who recently announced his retirement from feature filmmaking, but has signed on for other television-related projects—Behind the Candelabra is expected to be a strong contender for this year’s Emmy race. Nominations will be announced July 18.
Behind the Candelabra is available On Demand, and will be shown again on HBO on Thursday and Saturday.
