SHOWTIME(R) SERVES UP MORE SIN AND SEDUCTION WITH THIRD SEASON PICKUP OF "THE BORGIAS"

LOS ANGELES, CA (May 4, 2011) - As episode five of THE BORGIAS' second season debuts this coming Sunday on SHOWTIME, the network has ordered a third season of Vatican intrigue and Renaissance drama, with ten episodes to premiere in 2013. Production is slated to begin this summer in Budapest, Hungary, starring Jeremy Irons in his Golden Globe(R) Award-nominated role. The announcement was made today by David Nevins, President of Entertainment, Showtime Networks Inc.

THE BORGIAS stars Oscar(R)-winner Irons as Pope Alexander VI, the cunning, manipulative patriarch of the infamous Italian Renaissance family who builds an empire by bribing, buying and muscling his way into the papacy. In addition to Irons, season two also stars Francois Arnaud, Holliday Grainger, Joanne Whalley, Lotte Verbeek, David Oakes, and Colm Feore. As the series continues to unfold, the greatest existential threat to Alexander's Papacy may not come from foreign adversaries or ambitious political operatives, but may linger within his most trusted inner circle - his family. The cunning Cesare engages his dark side; the profligate Juan turns murderous and ostracized by his family; and the increasingly independent Lucrezia refuses to be a pawn in her family's continued quest for power. The second season is executive produced by Neil Jordan, Jack Rapke, Justin Falvey, David Leland, John Weber, Sheila Hockin and James Flynn. It is a Canadian-Irish-Hungarian Treaty co-production. Last year, the series earned Emmy(R) Awards for Outstanding Costumes and Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music.

For season three, Academy Award(R)-winner and Emmy nominee Neil Jordan (The Crying Game, Interview with the Vampire), will continue to serve as creator, executive producer, and will serve as writer and director of select episodes.

Season two of THE BORGIAS currently airs on Sundays at 10 p.m. ET/PT, and will finale on Sunday, June 17th at 10 p.m. ET/PT.