Marja-Lewis Ryan Signs Overall Deal With Showtime

SHOWTIME has signed THE L WORD: GENERATION Q showrunner, executive producer, director and writer Marja-Lewis Ryan to an overall deal through which she will develop television projects exclusively for SHOWTIME. The announcement was made TODAY by Gary Levine and Jana Winograde, Presidents of Entertainment, Showtime Networks Inc.

"Marja is our Shohei Ohtani ... a gifted two-way player who is both an exceptional writer and an inventive director," said Levine. "I love the energy, the perspective and the fun she brings to THE L WORD: GENERATION Q, and I look forward to the upcoming season of that series and other inspired creations from her."

"I'm so thrilled to have a home at SHOWTIME," said Ryan. "Their support of my vision for the THE L WORD: GENERATION Q has been absolutely extraordinary. I so look forward to developing my own projects as well as shepherding new, progressive creatives into the SHOWTIME flock as we work together to diversify the kinds of stories that get told."

Ryan started off as a Los Angeles-based playwright. Among her numerous stage credits, Ryan wrote, directed and produced the world premieres of her plays Dysnomia, One in the Chamber, A Good Family and Bugaboo and The Silent One. She also directed the L.A. premiere and Off-Broadway production of David Mamet's The Anarchist. She made her feature directorial debut with 6 Balloons, starring Abbi Jacobson and Dave Franco, which premiered at SXSW and for which she was nominated for the 2018 SXSW Gamechanger Award.  Upcoming, Ryan is producing an untitled dance series alongside executive producers Sandra Bullock, John Legend and Akiva Goldsman, and she is writing a remake of the iconic 1984 film Splash, set to star Channing Tatum and Jillian Bell.

Based on the groundbreaking drama series THE L WORD®, season two of THE L WORD: GENERATION Q will continue to follow the intermingled lives of Bette Porter (Jennifer Beals), Shane McCutcheon (Katherine Moennig), Alice Pieszecki (Leisha Hailey), Dani Nùñez (Arienne Mandi), Micah Lee (Leo Sheng), Sarah Finley (Jacqueline Toboni), Sophie Suarez (Rosanny Zayas), Gigi Ghorbani (Sepideh Moafi), and Angelica Porter-Kennard (Jordan Hull) as they experience love, heartbreak, setbacks and success in L.A. The highly anticipated season two premiere will return with its first new episode on Friday, August 6, available on streaming and on-demand for all SHOWTIME subscribers, before making its on-air debut on Sunday, August 8 at 10 p.m. ET/PT. Each new episode of the second season will be available on Fridays to stream via on-demand. The first five episodes of season two will air Sunday nights, with the final five episodes of the season airing Monday nights at 9 p.m. ET/PT up until its October 11 season finale. Season two is executive produced by Ryan along with series creator Ilene Chaiken, Kristen Campo, Allyce Ozarski, Maisha Closson, and original series stars Jennifer Beals, Katherine Moennig and Leisha Hailey.

Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly owned subsidiary of ViacomCBS Inc., owns and operates the premium service SHOWTIME®, which features critically acclaimed original series, provocative documentaries, box-office hit films, comedy and music specials and hard-hitting sports. SHOWTIME is available as a stand-alone streaming service across all major streaming devices and Showtime.com, as well as via cable, DBS, telco and streaming video providers. SNI also operates the premium services THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX®, as well as on demand versions of all three brands. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME PPV®. For more information, go to www.SHO.com.

Photo Credit: SHOWTIME

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