Rejoice, you lovers of Victorian supernatural sundries! Showtime has just announced that it will be renewing its gothic drama Penny Dreadful for a third season. The announcement comes halfway through the series second season, which has been truly excellent thanks both to the chemistry of the cast, the sumptuous nature of the show’s world, and its truly twisted dedication to a portrayal of the dark arts.

Even besides its witches and voodoo and demon spells and possessions, what makes Penny Dreadful an engrossing series is how deeply it considers its characters, and how real they feel through their emotional trials and tribulations. (And if you are aren't caught up, here are 8 reasons why you should do so immediately).

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Image via Showtime

Production of the third season will begin on Dublin, Ireland this fall for a 2016 debut (the third season will have 9 episodes — for reference, Season 1 had 8 and Season 2 had 10). Check out the full press release below, and don’t forget to check out our TV Lifeline for all of the latest news on the cancellation or renewal status of over 150 scripted shows.


 

NEW YORK, NY – June 16, 2015 SHOWTIME has renewed the critically-acclaimed, BAFTA Award-winning drama series PENNY DREADFUL for a third season, it was announced today by  David Nevins, President, Showtime Networks Inc. Created, written and executive produced by three-time Oscar® nominee John Logan, PENNY DREADFUL stars Josh Hartnett, Timothy Dalton and Eva Green. A co-production with Sky Atlantic,  PENNY DREADFUL will once again shoot on location in Dublin, Ireland for a nine episode order to debut in 2016. The second season of PENNY DREADFUL, currently airing on Sundays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME, will air its season finale on Sunday, July 5.

 

“John Logan’s brilliant writing and this amazingly talented ensemble continue to draw a passionate, global fan base into the meticulously crafted world of PENNY DREADFUL,” said Nevins. “Together with our wonderful partners at Sky Atlantic, we’re excited to see what new haunts John and his team have in store for season three.”

 

PENNY DREADFUL is the perfect fit for Sky Atlantic; truly international in scale and ambition but with a raft of British talent at its core, and filmed in the Republic of Ireland.” said Zai Bennett, Director of Sky Atlantic. “I’m thrilled to have the series returning to the channel, and to once again be partnering with John Logan and continuing to work with our good friends at SHOWTIME.”

 

PENNY DREADFUL’s second season has found Vanessa Ives (Eva Green) and Ethan Chandler (Josh Hartnett) forming a deeper bond as the group, including Sir Malcolm (Timothy Dalton), Dr. Frankenstein (Harry Treadaway), and Sembene (Danny Sapani), unite to banish the evil forces that threaten to destroy them. Meanwhile, Dorian Gray (Reeve Carney) and the Creature (Rory Kinnear) are all waging battles of their own. Two-time Tony® Award winner Patti LuPone appeared as a special guest star, a mysterious character of great importance in Vanessa’s past. Helen McCrory returned as Evelyn Poole, the seductive spiritualist who poses a unique threat to our protagonists, along with Simon Russell Beale, who is back as eccentric Egyptologist Ferdinand Lyle. Additional guest stars include Douglas Hodge as a Scotland Yard investigator and Sarah Greene as Poole’s powerful daughter, Hecate.

 

PENNY DREADFUL is created, written and executive produced by John Logan (Hugo, The Aviator, Gladiator) and executive produced by Logan's Desert Wolf Productions, and by Oscar winner Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Skyfall) and Pippa Harris’ (Revolutionary Road, Call The Midwife) Neal Street Productions. A co-production with Sky Atlantic, PENNY DREADFUL is shot on location in Dublin, Ireland. For more information and video clips, please visit www.penny-dreadful.com.


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Image via Showtime