Smash Season 2 Premiere: First Hour Will Be Available To Preview Next Week

Listen up, Smash fans! NBC's musical drama may be set to debut its second season in February, but the network is offering a treat for fans of the Broadway-focused series. NBC announced today that they're going to offer the first hour of Season 2's planned two-hour premiere a few weeks early, beginning next week.

The first season of Smash introduced us to Katharine McPhee's character Karen, an aspiring Broadway performer who tries out for a musical in development about Marilyn Monroe. Featuring various original songs, and some covers, the series' first season took us through the process (and the drama) of trying to get the show made, while Karen faced off against the talented Ivy (Megan Hilty) for the lead.

Here's the description NBC has offered for Season 2, which includes guest star Jennifer Hudson:

Back from a successful run in Boston, Eileen (Anjelica Huston), Julia (Debra Messing) and Tom (Christian Borle) are blindsided by both personal and professional obstacles as they seek to take “Bombshell” to Broadway. Karen (Katharine McPhee) consults her new mentor, Broadway star Veronica “Ronnie” Moore (guest star Jennifer Hudson), as she finds herself on the brink of fame, but her success may come at cost to Ivy (Megan Hilty). A new talent (Jeremy Jordan) is discovered in an unexpected place. Jack Davenport, Leslie Odom, Jr., Andy Mientus and Krysta Rodriguez also star. Jennifer Hudson, Thorsten Kaye, and Brian d’Arcy James guest star.

The early preview for the first hour of Season 2 will arrive on Monday, January 14 (next Monday) and will be available on a number of platforms, including On demand and online through cable, satellite and telco providers; NBC.com; NBC Owned and affiliate station websites (should they choose to opt in); Hulu (including Hulu’s online distribution partners); iTunes, Amazon and Xbox. And if you happen to be on a participating American Airlines flight, you may find it included in the in-flight entertainment for domestic flights between January 15-31. So be on the lookout for it, beginning next week.

Smash Season 2 officially premieres February 5 (9–11 p.m. ET) on NBC.

Kelly West
Assistant Managing Editor

Kelly joined CinemaBlend as a freelance TV news writer in 2006 and went on to serve as the site’s TV Editor before moving over to other roles on the site. At present, she’s an Assistant Managing Editor who spends much of her time brainstorming and editing feature content on the site. She an expert in all things Harry Potter, books from a variety of genres (sci-fi, mystery, horror, YA, drama, romance -- anything with a great story and interesting characters.), watching Big Brother, frequently rewatching The Office, listening to Taylor Swift, and playing The Sims.