“The Apprentice: ONE Championship Edition” premiered in Asia on Thursday, 18 March, racking up an estimated 4 million viewers. The show first aired on AXN, followed by additional free-to-air TV channels and digital platforms across the region.
Filmed in Singapore during the COVID-19 pandemic, “The Apprentice: ONE Championship Edition” is a production marvel.
The show’s premiere smashed viewership records, beating out other top-rated reality competition premieres including “America’s Got Talent” Season 20, and “The Voice” Season 20, among others.
“The Apprentice: ONE Championship Edition” is the most-watched 2021 season premiere of all English-language reality series on TV in Asia by broadcast reach so far.
“When we came up with the concept for ‘The Apprentice: ONE Championship Edition,’ we knew immediately we had something special on our hands,” said ONE Championship Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong, who also hosted the show.
“I am extremely grateful for the support of all our passionate fans across Asia who tuned in, our production partner Refinery Media, our brand sponsors, and broadcast partners, as well as the entire team at ONE Championship for the hard work they put in. ‘The Apprentice: ONE Championship Edition’ is not your grandfather’s ‘Apprentice,’ and I look forward to sharing this journey over the next 12 weeks.”
Check out the show’s broadcast viewership highlights down below:
Philippines
● Episode 1 broadcast reach exceeded the timeslot average on AXN in the Philippines by 60%, beating the Season 32 premiere of long-running American reality TV series “The Amazing Race.” (Timeslot average based on FY2020, Thu 8:50 p.m. slot. Source: Nielsen)
● Episode 1 rating on TV5 outperformed the timeslot average by 57%.
(Timeslot average based on FY2020, Sat 11 p.m. slot. Source: Nielsen)
Thailand
● The premiere episode on Amarin TV smashed records and emerged as the #1 talent contest program by reach and rating.
(Among all talent contest programs aired on Amarin TV from Aug 2020-Feb 2021. Source: Nielsen)
Singapore
● The premiere episode on AXN in Singapore lifted the timeslot average TVR by 38%, with the average time spent spanning 34 minutes.
(Timeslot average based on FY2020 Thu 8:50 p.m. slot. Source: Gfk)
Malaysia
● “The Apprentice” premiered on AXN as the #1-rated show for the day.
(All day on AXN Malaysia on 18 March 2021. Source: Nielsen)
“The Apprentice: ONE Championship Edition” invites 16 candidates handpicked from around the world to compete in a high-stakes competition involving business and physical challenges. The winner will receive a US$250,000 job offer to work directly under ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong for a year as his protege in Singapore.
“The Apprentice” is one of the biggest non-scripted reality television programs in history, judging the business skills of candidates who are competing for a job offer under a high-profile CEO. The first season of “The Apprentice: ONE Championship Edition” consists of 13 episodes and will be seen in the Philippines on Thursdays, 8:50 pm on AXN cable network and on Mondays at 9 p.m. on One Sport.
