After Fox’s Doc Immediately Broke A Ratings Record, The Stars And Bosses Told Us About The ‘Blood, Sweat, And Tears’ Making It

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In 2025 TV lineup, Fox re-entered the medical drama scene for the first time since wrapping up “The Resident” in 2023, and the new series, “Doc,” kick-started the year with impressive viewership numbers. Billed as a medical show focusing on Amy Larsen, a talented doctor grappling with memory loss, the hype surrounding its premiere drew in enough viewers to set Fox’s record for opening episodes. I had the opportunity to chat with the cast and executive producers about the remarkable ratings success of this series, and they all shared similar sentiments.

First things first!

How Doc Immediately Broke A Record

I followed the premiere of Doc on January 7th, but it wasn’t until the following days that the majority of viewers caught up with it. Initially, 2.2 million viewers in the key demographic tuned in on the day of its release, but over the course of eleven days, the total viewership skyrocketed to a staggering 15.6 million across various platforms, including replays. This represents an astounding increase of 609% from the Live+Same day figures.

Lone Star,” which aired early in 2020. Interestingly, the premiere of “Doc” came out only a few weeks before the final episode of “Lone Star.” Currently, both series can be streamed with a Hulu subscription.

Regarding streaming, the debut episode of “Doc” surpassed Fox’s top streamed premiere within a year, attracting 1.1 million viewers on Hulu and Fox.com, overtaking the previous record holder “The Floor”. Moreover, the second episode of “Doc” saw a 38% increase in Live+3 day viewings! To put it simply, Fox couldn’t ask for a better successor to “Kitchen Nightmares” on Tuesday nights!

How The Stars And EPs Feel About The Audience Size

The Doc team recently participated in SCAD TVfest held in Atlanta, where they screened their new series based on a real-life account. Unsurprisingly, it’s off to an impressive start. During this event, members of the cast, executive producer Hank Steinberg, and showrunner/executive producer Barbie Kligman had discussions with TopMob.

Jon Ecker, portraying the character Dr. Jake Heller in one leg of television’s unusual love triangle, expressed his thoughts upon witnessing the impressive viewership numbers for the series premiere as follows:

“Jon Ecker, who embodies Dr. Jake Heller within the unconventional love triangle on TV, commented about the record-breaking ratings for the debut episode:

It feels great to receive positive responses after all these months. In fact, the executive producers might’ve been working on this for quite a while before us, and it’s really satisfying now that it’s being appreciated.

By the time “Doc” made its debut, the cast had already completed filming the first season, and they graced the red carpet at the SCAD TVfest. Consequently, any feedback received occurs after it’s no longer feasible to implement changes. Previously from “Big Sky,” Omar Metwally, who portrays Dr. Michael Hamda as one more component in the love triangle and Amy’s former partner, stated:

It’s thrilling, since all that hard work – the perspiration, the effort, and the emotional investment – is poured into it, and you eagerly anticipate its positive reception.

The hard work, perspiration, and emotional effort clearly bore fruit, and it’s an added bonus that each episode becomes accessible for streaming on Hulu immediately after its live broadcast on Fox. Actress Molly Parker, who has been shouldering the largest acting responsibility as Dr. Amy Larsen in Doc, shared her perspective:

I’m really proud of the show, so you always hope that people will give it a chance.

Although we’re yet to know the final audience count for the season, it seems highly unlikely that Fox won’t commission another season. In my opinion, it would be fantastic if they paired this new season with the second installment of Rossif Sutherland and Kristin Kreuk’s “Murder in a Small Town”. Amirah Vann, who portrays Dr. Gina Walker, Amy’s psychiatrist and best friend, also seems to share my enthusiasm about the show’s potential viewership.

As a film enthusiast, I was ecstatic to witness the warm reception of my work. You pour your heart into every project, and the outcome is always uncertain. All we can do is present our creation as an offering. It’s a joy to have the opportunity to cultivate it, explore its depths, and attempt to find answers. Yet, it’s never flawless, but still, we offer it. When I see my offering embraced so positively, my excitement knows no bounds.

Over the course of his career as the creator of “Without a Trace,” executive producer Hank Steinberg has always kept a close eye on ratings. The show ran for seven seasons and produced over 150 episodes on CBS from 2002-2009. Given the success of “Doc” right out of the gate, Steinberg commented:

It’s quite unexpected, given the vast array of series available across various platforms today. Yet, it’s fascinating when something manages to stand out and gain traction like this one has.

Barbie Kligman, who serves as both producer and executive producer for the medical drama Doc, has a rich background in production, with previous work on shows like Magnum P.I., Private Practice, and CSI: NY. When discussing the viewership of her latest project, she referenced a program she worked on early in her career. Upon mentioning that network TV shows don’t receive as much attention nowadays as they used to, Kligman remarked:

Feeling incredibly grateful… When I initially started out in Hollywood, I was an assistant on ER, and it received a great deal of affection. [laughs] Back then, there were no streaming services or similar platforms. It had a massive audience. So seeing high viewership for Doc makes me feel really proud.

For over a year, ER consistently led television ratings during its 15-season span, so it’s not surprising that Barbie Kligman finds it gratifying to have “high viewership” once more. However, whether this audience will remain steady as we approach the latter part of the season remains to be seen.

Should you find yourself intrigued, feel free to join in by catching up with fresh episodes of “Doc” every Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET on Fox, or stream them later on Hulu. This latest addition to the medical drama scene is generating quite a buzz, with other networks offering similar shows such as “Chicago Med” (NBC), “Grey’s Anatomy” (ABC), and more recently, “Watson” (CBS). “Doc” is swiftly becoming a favorite in this genre.

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2025-02-12 06:10