SHOWCASE AND W NETWORK UNVEIL MUST-SEE, STAR-STUDDED FALL PREMIERES

Five New Premium Peacock Scripted Originals Debut on Showcase Including Mr. Throwback, Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist, Hysteria!, Sky Original Series Mr. Bigstuff and Sky and Peacock Original Series
The Day of the Jackal 

W Network's Hallmark Channel's Fall into Love Ushers In Six Heartwarming Movie Premieres, While Canada's Most Watched Holiday Programming Event, Hallmark Channel's Countdown to Christmas, Returns Bigger than Ever this October

Plus, W Network Welcomes the Second Half of Outlander Season 7 this November  

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TORONTO, Aug. 22, 2024 /CNW/ - Corus Entertainment's drama networks Showcase and W Network announced today the highly-anticipated fall premiere dates for new and returning programming. As the exclusive home of marquee Peacock Original content in English Canada, these networks feature top-tier talent, and compelling stories, fan-favourite returning series, and heartwarming Hallmark Channel movies. Corus' drama networks are set to deliver another must-watch lineup of premium entertainment, which will also be available to stream on STACKTV.

"This fall, Showcase and W Network are set to captivate audiences with an array of fresh premium content, from star-powered dramas and edge-of-your-seat thrillers to laugh-out-loud comedies and heartwarming stories," said Jennifer Abrams, SVP, Programming and Multiplatform, Corus Entertainment. "With a carefully curated lineup of compelling captivating storylines and standout characters, our premier drama networks offer a standout slate for viewers to enjoy, along with exclusive streaming flexibility for STACKTV subscribers."

Showcase

The Showcase fall programming begins on Sunday, September 8 at 9 p.m. ET as the star-studded, limited series Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist makes its Canadian debut. Featuring Kevin Hart, Samuel L. Jackson, Taraji P. Henson, Don Cheadle and Terrence Howard, the series is based on the acclaimed iHeart true-crime podcast and follows the infamous story of how an armed robbery on the night of Muhammad Ali's historic 1970 comeback fight changed not only one man's life, but ultimately transformed Atlanta into the "Black Mecca". When a hustler named Chicken Man (Kevin Hart) hosts an afterparty to celebrate the fight with a guest list of the country's wealthiest, the night ends with the most brazen criminal underworld heist in Atlanta's history. Suspected of masterminding the crime, Chicken Man is hellbent on clearing his name but must convince his old adversary, J.D. Hudson (Don Cheadle), one of the first Black detectives in the city's desegregated police force, who is tasked with bringing those responsible to justice.

Then slam dunk mockumentary comedy series Mr. Throwback, starring NBA legend Stephen Curry and Adam Pally, kicks off the network's hottest new comedy block on Thursday, September 12 at 9 p.m. ET. The series tells the story of a down-on-his-luck memorabilia dealer (Adam Pally) who seeks redemption by reuniting with his sixth-grade teammate, NBA legend Steph Curry.

Following next is Mr. Bigstuff, a Sky Original series, airing on Thursday, September 12 at 9:30 p.m. ET. The six-part comedy explores broken families, fragile masculinity and carpet sales, and tells the story of two estranged brothers; Glen (Ryan Sampson), a nervy perfectionist striving to live in the suburban ideal and Lee (Danny Dryer), an alpha male with a prescription drug addiction and a biscuit tin full of their dad's ashes. Glen and his fiancée Kirsty share a perfect, perfectly mundane life together. Sure, Glen's got crippling erectile dysfunction and Kirsty has a secret shoplifting habit, but they're happy. That is until Lee comes crashing into their lives, whilst on the run from a past that's quickly catching up with him. The trio are forced together: a perfectionist, a fantasist and an anarchist all living under the same roof in an Essex cul-de-sac. It's not long before their 'perfect' lives start to unravel faster than a cheap carpet.

Premiering Tuesday, October 22 at 9 p.m. ET is new pop-horror thriller Hysteria! starring Julie Bowen, Anna Camp, Emjay Anthony, Chiara Aurelia, Kezii Curtis and Nikki Hahn. When a beloved varsity quarterback disappears during the "Satanic Panic" of the late 1980s, a struggling high school heavy metal band of outcasts realize they can capitalize on the town's sudden interest in the occult by building a reputation as a Satanic metal band, until a bizarre series of murders, kidnappings and reported "supernatural activity" triggers a leather-studded witch hunt that leads directly back to them.

Lastly on the Showcase fall slate is the highly anticipated Sky and Peacock Original series The Day of the Jackal, premiering Sunday, November 10 at 9 p.m. E.T. An unrivalled and highly elusive lone assassin, the Jackal, (Academy & BAFTA award winner Eddie Redmayne) makes his living carrying out hits for the highest fee. But following his latest kill, he meets his match in a tenacious British intelligence officer (BAFTA award winner Lashana Lynch) who starts to track down the Jackal in a thrilling cat-and-mouse chase across Europe, leaving destruction in its wake.

Plus, new episodes of Season 3 of the hit series Bel-Air, the modern-day reimagining of the iconic culture-defining '90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, air Mondays at 9 p.m. ET and available to stream on STACKTV.

W Network

Hallmark Channel's Fall into Love programming event returns to W Network on Saturday, September 7, ushering in fall with six brand new movie premieres for audiences to cozy up to and enjoy all season long, including:

• Saturday, September 7: His and Hers (starring Lacey Chabert & Brennan Elliott)
• Saturday, September 14: The Heiress and the Handyman (starring Jodie Sweetin & Corey Sevier)
• Saturday, September 21: Falling Together (starring Ashley Williams & Paul Campbell)
• Saturday, September 28: The Real West (starring Kimberley Sustad, Lucas Bryant & James Denton)
• Saturday, October 5: Autumn at Apple Hill (starring Erin Cahill & Wes Brown)
• Saturday, October 12: Haunted Wedding (starring Janel Parrish & Dominic Sherwood)

Then in October, the biggest event of the year returns, as Hallmark Channel's Countdown to Christmas kicks off on W Network. This non-stop holiday extravaganza features more movie premieres and beloved festive favourites than ever before. More information coming soon.

Celebrating its landmark 10^th year anniversary, the highly anticipated return of Outlander, Season 7 premieres on W Network on Monday, November 25 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. As W Network's #1 rated program last Summer*, the series picks up from the harrowing events of Season 6, when Jamie (Sam Heughan) and Young Ian (John Bell) race to rescue Claire (Catriona Balfe) before she's tried and wrongfully convicted for the murder of Malva Christie. However, their mission is complicated by the beginning of a geopolitical firestorm: The American Revolution has arrived. In the seventh season of Outlander, Jamie, Claire, and their family are caught in the violent birth pains of an emerging nation as armies march to war and British institutions crumble in the face of armed rebellion. 

The land the Frasers call home is changing – and they must change with it. In order to protect what they've built, the Frasers have to navigate the perils of the Revolutionary War. They learn that sometimes to defend what you love, you have to leave it behind. As the conflict draws them out of North Carolina and into the heart of this fight for independence, Jamie, Claire, Brianna (Sophie Skelton), and Roger (Richard Rankin) are faced with impossible decisions that have the potential to tear their family apart.

Matthew B. Roberts, Ronald D. Moore, Maril Davis, Toni Graphia, Luke Schelhaas, Andy Harries, Jim Kohlberg, Caitríona Balfe, and Sam Heughan serve as executive producers on "Outlander," which is produced by Tall Ship Productions, Left Bank Pictures and Story Mining & Supply Company, in association with Sony Pictures Television.

Showcase is available on National Free Preview from October 1-31, and W Network is available on National Free Preview from November 1-30.

Showcase and W Network can be streamed via STACKTV, available on Amazon Prime Video Channels, Bell Fibe TV app, Fubo, Rogers Ignite TV and Ignite Streaming. The network is also available through all major TV distributors, including: Shaw, Shaw Direct, Rogers, Bell, Videotron, Telus, Cogeco, Eastlink and SaskTel.

*Source: Numeris PPM Data, Total Canada, Summer'23 (May 29 – Aug 27/23), 3+ airings, A25-54, AMA(000), CDN SPEC COM ENG excluding sports

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Showcase and W Network are Corus Entertainment Networks.

About Corus Entertainment Inc.  
Corus Entertainment Inc. (TSX: CJR.B) is a leading media and content company that develops and delivers high quality brands and content across platforms for audiences around the world. Engaging audiences since 1999, the company's portfolio of multimedia offerings encompass 33 specialty television services, 39 radio stations, 15 conventional television stations, digital and streaming platforms, and technology and media services. Corus is an internationally-renowned content creator and distributor through Nelvana, a world class animation studio expert in all formats and Corus Studios, a globally recognized producer of hit scripted and unscripted content. The company also owns full-service social digital agency so.da, lifestyle entertainment company Kin Canada, and children's book publishing house, Kids Can Press. Corus' roster of premium brands includes Global Television, W Network, HGTV Canada, Food Network Canada, Magnolia Network Canada, The HISTORY® Channel, Showcase, Adult Swim, National Geographic, Disney Channel Canada, YTV, Global News, Globalnews.ca, Q107, Country 105, and CFOX, along with streaming platforms STACKTV, TELETOON+, the Global TV App and Curiouscast. Corus is the domestic advertising representative and an original content partner for Pluto TV, a Paramount Company, which is the leading free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) service. For more information visit www.corusent.com.

SOURCE Corus Entertainment Inc.

For more information, please contact: Ashley Holder, Publicity Coordinator, Corus Entertainment, [email protected]; Kelsey MacLeod, Senior Publicist, Corus Entertainment, [email protected]