Showtime Delays The Affair Finale, Kidding Premiere to Pair with Homeland

Showtime is shaking its upcoming schedule a bit as the second season of the Jim Carrey-led Kidding, which was set to premiere in November, will now premiere in February alongside the premiere of the final season of Homeland, while the series finale of its soapy drama The Affair has now been extended one extra night, according to TVLine.

Kidding centers on Jeff, aka Mr. Pickles (Carrey), an icon of children’s television and a beacon of kindness and wisdom to America’s impressionable young minds and the parents who grew up with him. But when this beloved personality’s family begins to implode, Jeff finds no fairytale, fable or puppet will guide him through this crisis, which advances faster than his means to cope. The result: A kind man in a cruel world faces a slow leak of sanity as hilarious as it is heartbreaking.

The series also stars Oscar, Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon), Oscar, Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Catherine Keener (Get Out), Judy Greer (Married), Cole Allen and Juliet Morris. Guest stars include Justin Kirk (Weeds), Ginger Gonzaga (I’m Dying Up Here) and Tara Lipinski.

Throughout the season, Jeff begins to push back against the limits of the well-oiled machine that is “Mr. Pickles’ Puppet Time,” and of his executive producer, Seb (Langella). Seb fears Jeff’s mental state could ruin the branding empire they’ve built, and thus begins preparing the show for a life after Jeff, while Deirdre (Keener), the head puppet maker, grapples with her own professional and personal issues, including with her daughter, played by Morris. Greer stars as Jeff’s estranged wife, and their son is played by Allen.

Kidding is executive produced by Holstein, who wrote multiple episodes and serves as showrunner. The series reunites Carrey with Oscar winner Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind), who serves as executive producer and directed several episodes. In addition, season one of Kidding is executive produced by Carrey, Michael Aguilar (I’m Dying Up Here), Roberto Benabib (Weeds), Raffi Adlan (The Green Hornet), Emmy nominee Jason Bateman (Arrested Development) and Jim Garavente (Bad Words).

The second season of Kidding will premiere on Sunday, February 9 following the premiere of Homeland.

The Affair Season 5 stars Golden Globe nominee Dominic West (Colette), Golden Globe winner Maura Tierney (Beautiful Boy) and Sanaa Lathan. The series finale was set to air as a two-hour episode on October 27 but will now divide into two episodes, with the finale now airing on November 3.

Season 5 will chronicle the aftermath of last season’s horrific events and find the characters coming to terms with the consequences of their choices – as they make the realization that if they really want to change their futures, they must first face the past. Helen (Tierney) begins the season involved in an intoxicating new affair with a charismatic movie star (guest star Claes Bang), who offers to give her everything she’s been missing. Noah (West) meanwhile has to swallow his pride and his jealousy and step in to take care of his family in her absence.

But just when things seem to have stabilized, a chance encounter with someone from the distant past sets in a motion a sequence of events that brings them both to their knees. Paquin stars as Alison and Cole’s now adult daughter Joanie Lockhart, who returns some years in the future to piece together the truth about what happened to her mother, bringing the whole story full circle.

In addition to West, Tierney, and Paquin, season five series regulars include Julia Goldani Telles and Jadon Sand as Noah and Helen’s children, Whitney and Trevor Solloway; and Lathan, as Janelle, Noah’s girlfriend and the principal at the school where he teaches. New guest stars in season five include Jennifer Jason Leigh (Patrick Melrose), Claes Bang (The Square) and Lyriq Bent (She’s Gotta Have It), with Russell Hornsby (Fences) returning. Emily Browning, Omar Metwally, John Doman, Kathleen Chalfant, Max Fowler, Michael Braun, Abigail Dylan Harrison, and Jake Siciliano will also guest star.

The series was created by WGA Award-winning playwright, writer, executive producer and showrunner Sarah Treem (House of Cards, In Treatment). The Affair is also executive produced by Jessica Rhoades (Sharp Objects), Hagai Levi (In Treatment) and Michele Giordono (Nurse Jackie).

Season 8 of Homeland catches up with Danes’ Carrie Mathison recovering from months of confinement in a Russian gulag. Memory issues from the tortures she’s suffered prove problematic for Saul, who calls on her to engage the Taliban in peace negotiations.

Produced by Fox 21 Television Studios for Showtime, Homeland was developed for American television by Alex Gansa and Howard Gordon and is based on the original Israeli series Prisoners of War by Gideon Raff. Along with Gansa and Gordon, the executive producers for season seven are Chip Johannessen, Lesli Linka Glatter, Patrick Harbinson, Claire Danes, Michael Klick, Ron Nyswaner, Gideon Raff, Avi Nir, and Ran Telem.

Production on the final season of Homeland is currently underway. The series will return on Sunday, February 9.