On December 21, 2024, Italian television witnessed fierce competition as major shows battled for viewer attention during the prime holiday season. The flagship finale of 'Ballando con le stelle' aired on Rai 1, competing directly with the movie 'Improvvisamente Natale' on Canale 5, providing audiences with contrasting entertainment options on Saturday night.
'Ballando con le stelle', hosted by Milly Carlucci, attracted 4.381 million viewers, capturing 24.4% of the audience share for its segment called 'Tutti in Pista', which ran from 8:47 PM to 9:20 PM. The overall viewership dipped slightly during the main evening broadcast from 9:25 PM, topping out at 4.147 million viewers and achieving an impressive 34.1% share. The talent show, which crowned Bianca Guaccero and Giovanni Pernice as winners, solidified its status as television's go-to Saturday night entertainment.
Meanwhile, Canale 5's offering of 'Improvvisamente Natale', starring Diego Abbatantuono and Sara Ciocca, garnered 1.596 million viewers with 10.3% of the share. Though it struggled to match the performance of 'Ballando', the movie still provided a solid holiday-themed alternative for viewers.
Other networks contributed to the evening's entertainment with varying degrees of success. On Rai 2, the animated classic 'La carica dei 101' attracted 780,000 viewers (4.7% share). Rai 3's 'Sapiens Un Solo Pianeta', hosted by Mario Tozzi, performed slightly higher with 863,000 viewers, translating to 5.7% of the share.
Italia 1 aired the animated staple 'Il Grinch', which captured the interest of 926,000 viewers, equaling 5.5% share, showcasing the film's enduring popularity during the festive season. Rete 4’s showing of 'Assassinio sull'Orient Express' drew 532,000 viewers (3.4% share). On TV8, '4 Ristoranti' managed to attract 332,000 viewers for its first episode (1.9% share) and 279,000 for the second (2.1%). Then, on Nove, 'Un Principe per Natale' drew around 352,000 viewers with 2.1% share, and La7's 'Altre Parole' caught the attention of 415,000 viewers for 2.6% share.
Shifting to access prime time, Amadeus's show 'Chissà Chi È' aired the final episode on the Nove network amid this competitive atmosphere. The first segment attracted 360,000 viewers (2.1% share), which increased with the second longer segment to 533,000 viewers (2.9% share), indicating strong viewer engagement even with the other major shows on air.
Despite the tough competition, the results clearly indicated 'Ballando con le stelle' as the dominant choice among Italian households this Saturday. With excitement continuing around holiday programming, viewers can expect even more engaging content as the festive celebrations progress.
