Hot off a couple of explosive episodes of two of their original dramas and in anticipation of the premieres of some of their comedies, Showtime is giving non-subscribers a glance at the goods next month with a free preview weekend. The premium cable channel has timed it to coincide with the premieres of Shameless, House of Lies and Californication.
Showtime's offering a little something for everyone in their free preview weekend, which starts Friday, January 11. Here's what they have lined up:
Friday, January 11
8:00 p.m. ET/PT - The Iron Lady will premiere. The feature film stars Meryl Street as British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The performance earned Streep an Oscar and a Golden Globe.
11:15 p.m. ET (delayed on the West Coast)- ShoBox: The New Generation will feature undefeated 22-year-old Ronny Rios, who will face off against Rico Ramos in a 10-round featherweight match.
Saturday, January 12
8:00 p.m. ET/PT - The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 makes its TV debut on Showtime, for those Twi-hards who haven't gotten their fill of the first part of the two-part final installment in the feature adaptations of Stephenie Meyer's popular vampire series.
10:00 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the west coast)- STRIKEFORCE welterweight Champion will defend his titled against Tarec Saffiedine. There are four additional bouts set to air leading up to the main event and four preliminary fights set to air on Showtime Extreme starting at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT.
Sunday, January 13
9:00 p.m. ET/PT - Shameless premieres Season 3.
10:00 p.m. ET/PT - House of Lies premieres Season 2.
10:30 p.m. ET/PT - Californication returns for Season 6.
Showtime will also have every season of Dexter, Homeland, Shameless, Californication, Nurse Jackie, The Borgias, Episodes, Weeds, The Big C, House of Lies, Inside Comedy and Oliver Stone's Untold History of the United States, all of which will be available on Showtime On Demand and Showtime Anytime.
I'm pretty sure it's mathematically impossible for anyone to watch all of even most of those series in one weekend, so those non-subscribers will have a choice to make. Dexter's recent Season 7 was pretty fantastic, and I'd advise anyone to watch as much Homeland as possible. Then again, Weeds is also pretty great, particularly in the earlier seasons, and I have nothing but good things to say about The Big C, so I may not be much help in telling viewers how to narrow down their options. Needless to say, Showtime has a lot to offer and it looks like they're going out of their way to make all of it available to potential subscribers next month.
The Free Preview Weekend is available to digital subscribers of participating providers only, on both SD and HD feeds, across multiple platforms including: SHOWTIME, SHOWTIME HD, SHOWTIME ON DEMAND, SHOWTIME ANYTIME and distributor broadband services and mobile apps. Participating providers may not offer the free preview via all platforms. Previews may contain PG, PG-13, TV-14, TVMA and R-rated programming. You must be a digital subscriber to receive SHOWTIME ANYTIME, video on demand and HD. Viewers who tune in and order SHOWTIME for the first time can get $25 cash back. For additional details on the offer go to SHO.com/order and for SHOWTIME Free Preview weekend, go to www.sho.com/freepreview.
