Claire Danes and Don Cheadle headline new Showtime series
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Showtime is getting into the ‘house’ and ‘home’ business.
‘Homeland,’ a drama starring Claire Danes and Mandy Patinkin, and ‘House of Lies,’ a comedy starring Don Cheadle, will start production this summer. The shows represent the first projects ordered under new Showtime President of Entertainment David Nevins.
‘Both shows are very consistent with the kinds of shows we’ve had,’ said Nevins, who succeeded former Showtime head Bob Greenblatt last July (Greenblatt is now head of entertainment for NBC/Universal). ‘But they also represent a slight broadening of the kinds of shows we’ve done.’
‘Homeland’ stars recent Emmy Award winner Danes (‘Temple Grandin’) as troubled CIA officer Carrie Anderson, who becomes convinced that the intelligience that led to the rescue of a U.S. soldier (Damien Lewis) missing and presumed dead for nine years was a setup and may be connected to an Al Queda plot to be carried out on American soil. The series, featuring Mandy Patinkin as Anderson’s boss, is based on the Israeli TV series ‘Prisoners of War.’
Nevins said ‘Homeland’ is a ‘bigger production and bigger in scope’ than most Showtime fare, which includes ‘Dexter,’ ‘The Big C’ and ‘Nurse Jackie.’
‘House of Lies’ stars Cheadle as a highly successful, cutthroat management consultant who is never above using whatever it takes to get his way with and for his clients.
The series will be a showcase for Cheadle, who Nevins said ‘is really underappeaciated as a comedian.’
No air dates have been set for the series, but they may premiere late this year or early next year.
— Greg Braxton
Top: ‘Homeland’: Damien Lewis, left, Claire Danes, Mandy Patinkin
Above: ‘House of Lies: Josh Lawson, left, Don Cheadle, Ben Schwartz, Kristen Bell
