Showtime's 'Homeland' top drama for 2011, season 2 announcement

By April MacIntyre Oct 26, 2011, 17:24 GMT

Terror in the USA: Marine Sergeant Nicholas Brody, who returns home eight years after going missing in Iraq, and Carrie Anderson, a driven (and possibly unstable) CIA officer who suspects he might be plotting an attack on America are drawn together in a taught thriller of mistaken identity and subterfuge. ...more

"Homeland" is M&C's pick for best new drama on TV for 2011.

Great news today as Showtime announced a season 2 for fans of the thriller starring Claire Danes, Damian Lewis and Mandy Patinkin.

Ratings are boffo, and the network has ordered a season two, consisting of 12 new one-hour episodes.

The announcement was made today by David Nevins, President of Entertainment, Showtime Networks Inc. 

The series has continued to increase overall viewership since its premiere, with its most recent episode delivering the series’ best ratings to-date this past Sunday.  Season two will begin production in spring 2012.

“Homeland is just getting started,” said Nevins.  “Clearly, the overall audience growth from week one to week four demonstrates that this show is hitting a nerve in the cultural zeitgeist.  Alex and Howard have created a psychological thriller that holds special relevance in the post 9/11 world.  I’m quite confident that its passionate audience will be riveted as the season unfolds and people discover where this story is going.”

The countless accolades keep coming as the show gets deeper into its debut season.  Newsweek sys it is “the most addictive show of the season.”  The New York Times notes “Homeland is well made and gripping…impossible to resist” and TV Guide says “Hands-down the best new drama on TV.” USA Today raves “Stands out as the season’s best new drama.”  “Grade: A” says The Boston Globe.

The series is the story of Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes), a CIA officer battling her own demons, who becomes convinced that the intelligence that led to the rescue of Nicholas Brody (Damian Lewis), a U.S. soldier who had been missing and presumed dead for eight years, was a setup and may be connected to an Al Qaeda plot to be carried out on American soil.  Lewis is extraordinary in this complex and chilling roll.

The series also stars Morena Baccarin, David Harewood, Diego Klattenhoff, Morgan Saylor and Jackson Pace. "Homeland" is based on the original Israeli series “Prisoners of War,” by Gideon Raff.  

Along with Howard Gordon and Gansa, the executive producers for season one are Avi Nir, Ran Telem, Gideon Raff and  Michael Cuesta. The series is produced by FOX 21.