Roots (1977)

Biography · Drama · History

The epic tale of celebrated Pulitzer-prize winning author Alex Haley's ancestors as portrayed in the acclaimed twelve hour mini-series Roots, was first told in his 1976 bestseller Roots: The Saga of an American Family. The docu-drama covers a period of history that begins in mid-1700s Gambia, West Africa and concludes during post-Civil War United States, over 100 years later. This 1977 miniseries eventually won 9 Emmy awards, a Golden Globe award, and a Peabody award, and still stands as the most watched miniseries in U.S. history.

IMDb rating: 8.4 (20,325 votes)
Episode average: 8.1 -0.3 vs IMDb
Seasons: 1
Language: EN
Type: Mini-series

Rating trend: this show's seasons do not settle into one shape. Rising Shows ranks whole shows by the shape of their rating trend rather than one average score, which is how you find a show that got better rather than a show that started well.

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Ratings refreshed Oct 3, 2026 · 1 season indexed

Seasons

Season 1 (1977)

8.11 avg 8 episodes 8.3 → 8.1 74 min avg

Season 1 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Part I	8.3	504
2	Part II	8.3	423
3	Part III	8.1	388
4	Part IV	8.1	381
5	Part V	7.9	354
6	Part VI	8.0	355
7	Part VII	8.1	332
8	Part VIII	8.1	340