Showtime

Showtime Renews SHAMELESS, HOUSE OF LIES and CALIFORNICATION

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: February 1st, 2012 at 10:57 am

While HBO made some big cuts from their original programming towards the end of last year, Showtime is keeping shows around as EW has learned that the cable network has given an additional season order to Shameless, House of Lies and Californication. Shameless gets a third season after its stellar ensemble cast, including William H. Macy and Emmy Rossum, has come through with a great second season while House of Lies, with Don Cheadle and Kristen Bell, has gotten stellar ratings to earn a second season while its first season is still in progress. Finally Californication is still going strong to nab a sixth season, but I don’t know if it will last beyond that. Either way, it shows that Showtime has faith in their shows and should please fans of all three series.

David Nevins (President of Entertainment at Showtime) Talks the End of DEXTER, HOMELAND Season 2, NURSE JACKIE, HOUSE OF LIES, and More

by Christina Radish    Posted: January 13th, 2012 at 12:25 pm

As part of the network’s TCA Press Tour presentation, President of Entertainment at Showtime, David Nevins, took some time to talk about their popular, long-running drama series Dexter, what he thought of the creative choices for this season, and the relationship between Dexter (Michael C. Hall) and his adopted sister Deb (Jennifer Carpenter). Nevins also talked about the status of future seasons of Nurse Jackie and The Borgias, his hopes for their latest comedy, House of Lies, and where this season’s most critically acclaimed new drama, Homeland, will be headed in Season 2. Check out what he had to say after the jump:

THE BORGIAS, NURSE JACKIE and THE BIG C All Return to Showtime on April 8th

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: January 12th, 2012 at 4:43 pm

For fans of three Showtime series eagerly awaiting a new season, there’s good news. Today Showtime announced that Nurse Jackie starring Edie Falco, The Big C with Laura Linney and The Borgias with Jeremy Irons will all return in that order on the same night, Sunday, April 8th starting at 9/8c. Emmys and Golden Globes have all been thrown at each of the respective series for the aforementioned lead talent, so it’s no surprise that Showtime has plotted this huge block of three of their award-winning series. The full press release after the jump will serve as a bit of a refresher for how each series concluded their last season, and also hints at what’s in store as the new seasons kick off.

Watch the Series Premiere of HOUSE OF LIES Starring Don Cheadle; Showtime Streaming the Pilot Early

by Brendan Bettinger    Posted: December 27th, 2011 at 10:56 am

A classic marketing strategy over at Showtime is to stream premiere episodes a week or two before the airdate.  The network has done it for new seasons of Dexter and Weeds, as well as new series Shameless and Homeland.  It must be working, because Showtime has just posted the pilot for the upcoming comedy House of Lies for all to see.  I really like the cast: Don Cheadle, Kristin Bell, Ben Schwartz, and Josh Lawson star as a management consulting team.  Hit the jump to watch Episode 1, “Gods of Dangerous Financial,” before House of Lies premieres on January 8.

Showtime Turning ANIMAL KINGDOM Into a TV Series

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: December 16th, 2011 at 2:26 pm

Though Showtime already has a fantastic crime drama in the form of Dexter and a great family drama with a bit of criminal mischief with Shameless, another felonious family will be heading to the cable network. THR has word that the cable network is working with Shameless writer John Wells to turn the Sundance selected, Grand Jury Prize winning drama Animal Kingdom into an hour-long TV series. Wells will executive produce the series which will follow a family of criminals as they struggle with the police and deal with their ordinary lives stuck in the middle of their criminal activities. Southland writer and co-executive producer Jonathan Lisco will script the series, but it’s going to take some hard work to measure up to the performances and quality filmmaking that made the big screen story so fantastic. Hit the jump to watch the trailer for the film.

Liev Schreiber to Lead Showtime Drama Pilot RAY DONOVAN

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: November 29th, 2011 at 2:06 pm

Showtime greenlit the pilot for the new drama series Ray Donovan back in August, and now a lead actor has been found. Deadline reports Liev Schreiber (X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Salt) will lead the potential new series from Southland creator and executive producer Ann Biderman and Mark Gordon. Schreiber is indeed playing the titular role in a show that will focus on Ray (Schreiber), a professional “fixer” for LA’s rich and famous, the go-to guy in Hollywood who deftly solves the highly confidential problems of the city’s most intriguing personalities and yet he can’t quite escape the damage in his own troubled family. This is Schreiber’s first series regular role on TV besdies doing a four-episode arc on CSI way back in 2007. Of course, the actor has previously been nominated for an Emmy after his fantastic turn as Orson Welles in the TV movie RKO 281. Schreiber is truly an underrated talent, so I’m interested to see him lead his own series on cable.

DEXTER Renewed for Two More Seasons; Show Will Likely End After Season 8

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: November 18th, 2011 at 11:33 am

While negotiations for a seventh season of Showtime’s smash hit series Dexter came to a stalemate earlier last month, unsurprisingly all parties involved have finally come to an agreement as the network has renewed the show for two more seasons.  The series is the hallmark of Showtime’s original programming, and even though it’s in its sixth season the ratings continue to rise from week to week. While last season was a bit of a letdown following a series-best season four (fueled by a powerhouse performance by John Lithgow), I’ve been pretty happy with the story arcs in the current season. Hit the jump for more, including the likelihood of season eight being the show’s last.

Paul Bettany to Star in Showtime Pilot MASTERS OF SEX

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: November 12th, 2011 at 12:16 pm

Paul Bettany is headed to cable. The Legion actor has been set as the lead in Showtime’s new pilot Masters of Sex. The series will revolve around sexual education researchers William Masters and Virginia Johnson. THR reports that Bettany will play Masters in his first foray into series television. Masters and Johnson pioneered human sexual response research, as well as the diagnosis and treatment of sexual disorders and functions. The two met in 1957, marrying years later in 1971. Their research continued up through the 1990s, until their divorce all but ended their professional partnership.

The Pacific and John Adams writer Michelle Asford wrote the pilot and will executive produce. Showtime is currently home to the ever-popular Dexter, but it’s their freshman series Homeland that’s getting all the attention. The Claire Danes-starred series is like a deliciously smart version of 24, and I’d be so bold as to say it’s the best thing currently on TV. Ratings have been consistently impressive, and critics have taken quite a liking. If you get Showtime and haven’t seen it, I highly suggest you check it out.

Showtime Renews WEEDS for Eighth Season

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: November 10th, 2011 at 4:18 pm

The last season of Weeds threw viewers for a loop by pushing forward three years to find Nancy (Mary-Louise Parker) finishing a stint in federal prison which didn’t stop her from restarting her drug dealing in New York City, and now Showtime has announced we’ll definitely see the next chapter come through with the cable network announcing an order for an eighth season of the series. Consisting of thirteen episodes, the new season will go into production sometime in 2012, and while the press release (which you can find after the jump) doesn’t mention it, some insiders have speculated that this could be the final season for the long-running series.

Brian K. Vaughan to Pen Series Adaptation of Stephen King’s UNDER THE DOME for Showtime

by Dave Trumbore    Posted: November 7th, 2011 at 5:47 pm

Award-winning comic book/television writer Brian K. Vaughan (Lost) has signed on to adapt iconic author Stephen King’s Under the Dome as a series for Showtime. King’s 2009 novel is a supernatural thriller that pits local folks against each other when they find their vacation town in Maine (obviously) cut off from the rest of the world by a mysterious force field. The story rights were secured by DreamWorks’ Television’s Steven Spielberg and Stacey Snider shortly after publication.

Known for his work on some of the more memorable episodes of Lost (“Meet Kevin Johnson”), Vaughan is also the writer behind comic book series “Y: The Last Man,” “Ex Machina,” and “Runaways.” Hit the jump for more on Under the Dome.

Showtime Orders a Second Season for HOMELAND

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: October 26th, 2011 at 11:03 am

After four episodes into the freshman season, most series find their numbers falling from the series premiere, however, in the case of Showtime’s new drama Homeland, the most recent episode garnered the highest ratings yet (and that’s after becoming the network’s highest rated new series ever) which has prompted to cable network to order a second season consisting of 12 episodes. For those who haven’t been watching, it sounds like now is the time to follow the story of Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes), a CIA officer battling her own demons, who becomes convinced that the intelligence that led to the rescue of Nicholas Brody (Damian Lewis), a U.S. soldier who had been missing and presumed dead for eight years, was a setup and may be connected to an Al Qaeda plot to be carried out on American soil. The series also features the talents of Mandy Patinkin (The Princess Bride). Showtime’s President of Entertainment David Nevins says, “Homeland is just getting started.” For the full press release, hit the jump.

Showtime Developing LGBT Drama Series with TEMPLE GRANDIN Writer and Lee Daniels; Fox Buys Comedy Pilot from Jonah Hill and Comedian Hannibal Buress

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: October 11th, 2011 at 10:59 am

The filmmaker is already involved with a TV adaptation of The Valley of the Dolls at NBC, but director Lee Daniels is playing around with the small screen even more. Deadline has word that Daniels is working with Temple Grandin writer W. Merritt Johnson for a new drama at Showtime that will focus on the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bi-Sexual, Transsexual) subculture. Daniels is attached to direct the pilot for the potential series which is set in New York City and centers on the disenfranchised multicultural transgender youth of the Ball subculture. The culture has changed over the decades, but the underground society is said to consist of New York City’s disadvantaged black, Latino, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transexual communities who come together to compete for trophies and prizes, almost like a set of fraternities. Showtime’s no stranger to the lives of some of these communities with shows like The L Word and Queer as Folk in their past, so this definitely seems right up their alley. And with an Academy Award nominated director and Emmy nominated writer on board, it should be an interesting series.

Details on a new comedy pilot from Jonah Hill and comedian Hannibal Buress after the jump.

Bidding War Breaks out over New Season of ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: October 5th, 2011 at 9:30 am

The recent announcement of a new season of Arrested Development just happened a few days ago and a bidding war has already broken out between several prospective buyers looking to snag the rights to the eagerly awaited new episodes of the canceled Fox comedy series. Netflix and Showtime were said to be in the running when the news broke over the weekend. Now Vulture has word that Hulu is entering the mix as well. Personally, I’d like to see the series actually end up on television again to get the maximum audience possible, but if the only buyer is Showtime, then the pay cable service doesn’t exactly make it any easier to watch than if it were on Netflix. Either way, it sounds like fans are going to have to pay money to one of these three services in order to watch new episodes of Arrested Development, but for fans who have been thirsty for more of the Bluth family, I don’t think that will be an issue.

Stalled Negotiations Between Michael C. Hall and Showtime Put 7th Season of DEXTER in Jeopardy

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: October 4th, 2011 at 1:54 pm

First the stars of  The Simpsons are having a hard time with Fox about a huge paycut that might halt production on the series next spring, but now it looks like cable is having a similar battle. Deadline has word that Showtime has reached in impasse in negotiations with Michael C. Hall for his new contract for Dexter following the conclusion of his current deal which ends with the sixth season (read my review of last weekend’s premiere right here). Apparently Showtime has offered Hall $20 mllion for two more seasons while the actor’s representatives are looking to close a $24 million deal instead. That’s not to say that Hall doesn’t deserve the payment for turning in a spectacular performance every single season, but apparently either salary would make him one of the highest paid actors in cable. Right now the two sides can’t reach an agreement, and there’s a chance a deal might be struck for one season instead of two, but that doesn’t seem like the best option for fans who just want more. But the question remains how long Dexter can have the strong legs the series has maintained thus far. Perhaps one more season would be best for our dark passenger.

Damian Lewis Interview HOMELAND

by Christina Radish    Posted: October 1st, 2011 at 8:18 am

In the new Showtime dramatic thriller Homeland, premiering on October 2^nd, Marine Sgt. Nicholas Brody (Damian Lewis) returns home to a hero’s welcome after eight years in enemy confinement. Even though Brody’s wife, Jessica (Morena Baccarin), and two children are shocked, they are happy to learn that he is still alive. However, brilliant but volatile CIA Agent Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) isn’t buying his story, instead believing that Brody has been turned and is now working for Al Qaeda. With America’s national security at stake, what follows is a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse, leading everyone Carrie knows to question whether her conviction is based on fact or is the product of a delusional obsession.

During a recent interview to promote the original series, London-born actor Damian Lewis talked about being attracted to this story because he enjoys the contradiction that someone could return a hero but possibly be the villain, how thrilled he is to be a part of a compelling American TV series, how important the reality of the torture scenes are, and that cable shows his ass much more than his previous television projects ever did. Check out what he had to say after the jump:

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