NBC's 'Playboy Club' rapidly losing viewers...and sponsors
The '60s series set at Hugh Hefner's mothership is in serious danger of cancellation after just two weeks
The bunny ears are wilting already.
After just two weeks on the air, The Playboy Club, NBC's heavily promoted series centered around Hugh Hefner's Chicago pleasure dome in the '60s, is circling the drain.
A disappointing 5 million viewers tuned into the debut. Worse, only 3.8 million of them came back on Monday night for a second look. Erosion like that is deeply troublesome to the network.
The show, starring Eddie Cibrian and Amber Heard, has been hit hard in the pocketbook as well.
The Parents Television Council has called for an advertiser boycott of The Playboy Club an embargo which is proving quite effective so far. Seven sponsors, including Kraft, Subway and Campbell's Soup, pulled their planned ads from this week's episode.
The boycott isn't stopping there.
"Until the program is removed from the public airwaves, PTC will be calling on its members and other concerned citizens to contact the sponsors," said the group's president, Tim Winter. "Today we ask Capital One, Chrysler and Samsung if their corporate values are in step with those of the Playboy brand."
If you're wagering on the first new series to get cancelled this season, The Playboy Club just became a smart bet.
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