Showtime Fires Up a Second Season of Hit Comedy WEEDS

Showtime Fires Up a Second Season of Hit Comedy WEEDS

Twelve New Episodes of Critically Acclaimed Series Starring Golden Globe Nominees Mary-Louise Parker and Elizabeth Perkins Begins Production in Spring for Summer Debut

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- On the heels of today's three Golden Globe(R) nominations including Best Television Series-Musical or Comedy, SHOWTIME greenlighted 12 new episodes of WEEDS for a second season, it was announced today by Showtime's President of Entertainment Robert Greenblatt. One of the most talked about comedy series of the year, WEEDS debuted last August to critical raves. A production of Lions Gate Television, the series stars Mary-Louise Parker, Elizabeth Perkins, Tonye Patano, Romany Malco, Justin Kirk and Kevin Nealon. Created and executive produced by Emmy(R) Award winner Jenji Kohan, the series will resume production in Los Angeles this spring and premiere this summer.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051213/NYTU159-ahttp://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051213/NYTU159-b )

"WEEDS represents the best of what Showtime can offer -- a provocative, complex, richly textured show about contemporary family life that also manages to be incredibly relatable," said Greenblatt. "And its execution -- writing, acting, directing, and production values -- are at the very top of the food chain. This show makes our network shine. We were addicted the minute we saw the pilot."

"The critical and popular response to WEEDS has been tremendous and we're thrilled to be moving forward on the second season," said Kevin Beggs, President of Programming and Production, Lions Gate Television. "We're extremely proud of our creative team headed by Jenji Kohan, and we salute our extraordinary cast."

At today's Golden Globe nominations, Mary-Louise Parker was nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series-Musical or Comedy and Elizabeth Perkins was nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television.

WEEDS, a single-camera comedy that exposes the dirty little secrets that lie behind the pristine lawns and shiny closed doors of homes in the fictional town of Agrestic, California. Parker stars as a suburban mom who resorts to selling weed to support her family after her husband unexpectedly dies. Perkins stars as the uptight head of the PTA and Nealon plays a city councilman and one of Parker's regular customers. Parker's character finds unusual support and solace from an African American family as she begins to pursue her burgeoning business. Produced by Lions Gate Television in association with Tilted Productions, WEEDS is executive produced by Jenji Kohan ("Friends").

Lions Gate Television is the television production and distribution arm of Lions Gate Entertainment. Lions Gate Entertainment is the premier independent producer and distributor of motion pictures, television programming, home entertainment, family entertainment and video-on-demand content. Its prestigious and prolific library is a valuable source of stable and recurring revenue and serves as a foundation for the continued growth of the Company's core businesses. The Lions Gate brand name is synonymous with original, daring, quality entertainment in markets around the world.

Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Viacom Inc., owns the premium television networks SHOWTIME(R), THE MOVIE CHANNEL(TM) and FLIX(R), as well as the multiplex channels SHOWTIME(R) TOO(TM), SHOWTIME(R) SHOWCASE, SHOWTIME EXTREME(R), SHOWTIME BEYOND(R), SHOWTIME NEXT(R), SHOWTIME WOMEN(R), SHOWTIME FAMILYZONE(R) and TMC xtra. SNI also offers SHOWTIME HD(R), THE MOVIE CHANNEL HD(R), SHOWTIME ON DEMAND(R) and THE MOVIE CHANNEL ON DEMAND(TM). SNI operates and manages the premium television network SUNDANCE CHANNEL(R), which is a venture between NBC Universal, Robert Redford, and Showtime Networks Inc. All SNI feeds provide enhanced sound using Dolby Digital 5.1. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME(R) PPV. Additionally, the advertiser-supported television network SHOWTIME is available in Turkey through a joint venture with UK-based Zone Vision.

Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051213/NYTU159-a
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051213/NYTU159-b
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Showtime Networks Inc.

CONTACT: Chloe Comins of Showtime Networks, +1-212-708-1708,
chloe.comins@showtime.net; or Leah Krantzler of Lions Gate Television,
+1-323-965-1990, lkrantzler@lippingroup.com

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