Showtime Networks Inc. News

Showtime Networks Inc. and A24 Films have entered into an exclusive output agreement under which qualifying A24 films theatrically released through November 1, 2022 will air across SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL and FLIX®, as well as on SHOWTIME multiplex channels and streaming services. The agreement allows Showtime Networks Inc. to exhibit high-profile A24 features across its premium services on-air, on demand and online. The announcement was made by Kent Sevener, Executive Vice President, Content Acquisition and Business and Legal Affairs, Showtime Networks Inc. 

Smithsonian Channel continues its annual initiative honoring Veterans Month with two all-new specials to air this November. MEMPHIS BELLE IN COLOR tells the story of the famed Memphis Belle – a B-17 bomber plane that became a symbol of the Allies' desperate fight against the German Luftwaffe during WWII – with vibrant color footage of the iconic aircraft in combat. Turning toward the Pacific theater, BATTLE OF MIDWAY: THE TRUE STORY revisits one of the most pivotal battles in United States naval history  – a decisive victory that turned the tide in the United States' punishing fight against Japan. MEMPHIS BELLE IN COLOR will premiere on Sunday, November 10 at 9 p.m. ET/PT, and BATTLE OF MIDWAY: THE TRUE STORY will premiere on Monday, November 11 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Smithsonian Channel.

THE CIRCUS: INSIDE THE WILDEST POLITICAL SHOW ON EARTH returns this Sunday, September 22 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME, venturing behind the scenes of the unfolding 2020 campaign.

Showtime Networks celebrated its 2019 nominees at a private event hosted at the San Vicente Bungalows in West Hollywood on Saturday, September 21, 2019. The company feted the cast and producers of Escape at Dannemora including Ben Stiller, Patricia Arquette and Paul Dano, WHO IS AMERICA and its star and creator Sacha Baron Cohen, BLACK MONDAY's Don Cheadle, and Pop TV's SCHITTS CREEK including Dan Levy and Eugene Levy.

Today, SHOWTIME Documentary Films announced that the latest feature from Emmy winning director Lauren Greenfield (The Queen of Versailles), THE KINGMAKER, will have its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival this August. The documentary centers on the indomitable character and controversial political career of Imelda Marcos, the former first lady of the Philippines whose behind-the-scenes influence of her husband Ferdinand's presidency rocketed her to the global political stage. THE KINGMAKER will screen at additional festivals in the upcoming months, followed by a theatrical release this fall and a world television premiere on SHOWTIME in early 2020.

Showtime Documentary Films today announced it will premiere the new documentary SID & JUDY from director Stephen Kijak (STONES IN EXILE, WE ARE X), producer Diane Becker and Academy Award® winning producer John Battsek (ERIC CLAPTON: LIFE IN 12 BARS, LISTEN TO ME MARLON) on Friday, October 18 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. Narrated by Emmy® winner Jon Hamm (Mad Men) and Academy Award nominee Jennifer Jason Leigh (PATRICK MELROSE), SID & JUDY explores the dramatic career and personal struggles of the talented and tragically short-lived entertainer Judy Garland through rare concert footage, never-heard-before voice recordings and personal photos. The film premiered at the Frameline Festival in San Francisco in June and will screen at Outfest Los Angeles on Saturday, July 27 at the iconic Ford Theater in Hollywood.

Showtime Documentary Films today announced it will premiere the new documentary HITSVILLE: THE MAKING OF MOTOWN from directors Benjamin and Gabe Turner (Class of 92, I Am Bolt, One Direction: This Is Us) on Saturday, August 24 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. The remarkable story of the legendary Motown Records is told through new and exclusive interviews with the label's visionary founder, Berry Gordy, and many of its superstar artists and creative figures, as well as rare performances and behind-the-scenes footage unearthed from Motown's vaults and Gordy's personal archives. HITSVILLE: THE MAKING OF MOTOWN is the first documentary about the iconic label with Gordy's participation.

Today, SHOWTIME was recognized with 18 Primetime Emmy Award nominations by the Television Academy, including the network's second consecutive nomination in the Outstanding Limited Series category for ESCAPE AT DANNEMORA. The network was also honored for Outstanding Variety Sketch Series for WHO IS AMERICA? and four actor nods for ESCAPE AT DANNEMORA's Patricia Arquette, Benicio Del Toro, Paul Dano and BLACK MONDAY's Don Cheadle.

Take a journey along the twists and turns of the canine family tree to meet the most dangerous and wondrous wild dogs in the natural world and learn how they eventually went on to become much-loved pets like Labradors, bulldogs, mutts and more. Hosted by biologist Patrick Aryee, AMAZING DOGS travels the world to study all 34 extraordinary canine species – from the Arctic fox to South America's maned wolves and everything in between. Aryee examines these wonderfully varied creatures and discovers how, by harnessing their wild instincts, dogs helped change the course of human history. Taking viewers from the jungles of Brazil to the deserts of Africa and onto North America's prairies to meet the most incredible canines known to man – AMAZING DOGS premieres Sunday, July 28 at 8 p.m. ETPT on Smithsonian Channel.  

As John Walker Lindh is released from prison, Showtime Documentary Films today announced the production of DETAINEE 001, from Emmy(R) winning director Greg Barker (The Final Year, Sergio, Manhunt, Legion of Brothers). The film, which has been in production since 2017, gives the definitive account of Lindh's story with never-before-revealed details from his legal case and unpacks challenging truths and shifting allegiances behind one of the most compelling and unresolved mysteries of the post-9/11 age. Lindh's case set a precedent for how Americans caught up in the War on Terror were prosecuted, and the film examines how American military and justice systems have grappled with the two decades since his detention.

The Paley Center for Media honored the LGBTQ+ community, and the television series, movies, sports and news programs, and that broke barriers, shattered stereotypes, and brought audiences together at The Paley Honors: Tribute to LGBTQ+ Achievements in Television on the Occasion of the 50th Anniversary of Stonewall on May 15. This momentous occasion was held at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in Midtown Manhattan.

After his compelling work on the acclaimed Showtime limited series PATRICK MELROSE, Emmy nominated writer/director Edward Berger returns to the network to direct the first three episodes and executive produce the new limited series YOUR HONOR. The 10-episode series starring Oscar nominee and Emmy, Golden Globe®, Screen Actors Guild® and Tony® Award winner Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), is a legal thriller that rips through all strata of New Orleans society. Cranston will star as a respected judge whose son is involved in a hit-and-run that leads to a high-stakes game of lies, deceit and impossible choices. YOUR HONOR is executive produced by Emmy nominees Robert and Michelle King (The Good Fight, The Good Wife, Evil). BAFTA winner Peter Moffat - whose Criminal Justice was the basis for The Night Of - serves as showrunner and executive producer and has written multiple episodes, including the first episode. YOUR HONOR will go into production this fall in New Orleans.

SHOWTIME has announced the cast for HOMBRE, its new pilot from Academy Award® nominee Jonas Cuarón (Gravity). Marisé Alvarez (The Vessel), Greg Grunberg (A Star Is Born), Pepi Sonuga (Famous In Love), Adriana Santos (Taken) and Noah Reyes will join executive producer and Golden Globe® winner Gael García Bernal (Mozart In The Jungle, Coco) for the emotional thriller, which is set to begin production at the end of April in Los Angeles. The project is created by Cuarón, who will also direct the pilot and serve as executive producer. HOMBRE is a co-production from SHOWTIME and Makeready.

Showtime Documentary Films today announced a four-part documentary series that will chronicle the history of the iconic L.A. club The Comedy Store, directed and executive produced by Mike Binder (Black or White) and executive produced by Oscar®nominee and Emmy® winner Mike Tollin (THE FRANCHISE). The project is expected to premiere on SHOWTIME in 2020.

Emmy-nominated actor Hugh Dancy (Hannibal) will guest star in a multi-episode arc on the award-winning drama series HOMELAND, starring Emmy and Golden Globe winner Claire Danes and Emmy and Tony® winner Mandy Patinkin. Dancy will recur as John Zabel, a savvy Washington consultant who joins the White House as a new foreign-policy advisor to the President and a formidable opponent to Saul Berenson (Patinkin). The acclaimed series is currently in production on its eighth and final season and will premiere later this year.

SHOWTIME has released a first look at the premiere of its new four-part docu-series ACTION, airing thisSunday, March 24 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. ACTION explores the legalization of sports gambling and chronicles the lives of professional gamblers, oddsmakers, polarizing consultants, illegal bookies and more throughout the 2018 NFL season. In this clip from episode one, professional gambler Bill “Krack” Krackomberger explains his unique strategy to gain an edge against sports books.

SHOWTIME has released the trailer for its new four-part docu-series ACTION, premiering on Sunday, March 24 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. Directed by Luke Korem, ACTION explores the legalization of sports gambling and its evolving impact on the industry following the landmark 2018 Supreme Court decision to lift a ban on sports betting. Peeling back the curtain on a once taboo industry during its most critical juncture, ACTION chronicles the lives of professional gamblers, bookies and oddsmakers throughout the 2018 NFL season, culminating with the biggest gambling day of the year, Super Bowl Sunday. The character-driven narrative delivers intimate access to a diverse cross-section of the sports gaming community and documents the effects of legalization through their prisms. To watch and share the official trailer for ACTION, go here!

Fran Drescher headlines FUNNY WOMEN OF A CERTAIN AGE, a new comedy special that will premiere on SHOWTIME on Friday, March 23 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. Carole Montgomery, Luenell, Lynne Koplitz, Kerri Louise and Vanessa Hollingshead round out the lineup for the first television comedy special to feature six female comics over the age of 50. The outrageous hour-long special was filmed at The Bell House in Brooklyn.

Otto Bathurst (Black Mirror, Robin Hood) is set to direct the highly anticipated SHOWTIME series HALO, based on the hallowed Xbox® franchise with Kyle Killen (Awake) serving as executive producer, writer and showrunner. Bathurst will helm multiple episodes and executive produce the live-action series, which has an initial nine-episode order. Produced by SHOWTIME in partnership with 343 Industries, along with Steven Spielberg's Amblin Television, HALO will begin production later this year.

Showtime Announces Four-Part Documentary Series ACTION