Showtime has announced the return of three of their popular TV series — Nurse Jackie, The Big C, and The Borgias — earlier than expected. Rather than spread them out, all three shows will return on Sunday, April 8th.

The Big C is back for season three and The Borgias returns for a second season, with 10 episodes each. Nurse Jackie is back for a fourth round. It’s unclear how many episodes have been ordered but all three previous seasons have had a dozen installments apiece.

SHOWTIME(R) CATCHES SPRING FEVER WITH “NURSE JACKIE,” “THE BIG C” & “THE BORGIAS”

Network’s Three Hit Series To Return On Sunday, April 8th

LOS ANGELES, CA (January 12, 2012) – On Sunday, April 8th, three hit SHOWTIME series will return to the network in a triple-header night of programming. The night kicks off with the fourth season of NURSE JACKIE at 9 PM ET/PT, starring Emmy(R) Award winner Edie Falco; followed by the third season of THE BIC C at 9:30 PM ET/PT, starring Golden Globe(R) winner Laura Linney; and culminating with the hit drama series THE BORGIAS at 10 PM ET/PT, starring Jeremy Irons in his Golden Globe nominated role.

In its debut season, NURSE JACKIE received an Emmy nomination for “Outstanding Comedy Series” and Falco won the Emmy Award for her role as Jackie Peyton. Last season, she received her second Emmy nomination for the series. When season four returns, Jackie is coming to realize that both karma and sobriety can be a bitch. In addition to finally confronting her addiction, Jackie must also attempt to save her troubled marriage and keep her family from falling apart. At work, Jackie’s street smarts and sardonic wit are tested even further by an ambitious new hospital administrator (special guest star Bobby Cannavale), determined to run a tight ship and keep her in line. The series also stars Eve Best, Merritt Wever, Paul Schulze, Dominic Fumusa, Anna Deavere Smith and Peter Facinelli. Stephen Wallem, Arjun Gupta and Lenny Jacobson guest star. Season four’s other special guest stars include acclaimed actors Rosie Perez, Aida Turturro, Joel Grey, New York Knicks’ forward Carmelo Anthony and Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong. NURSE JACKIE season three averaged 2.8 million weekly viewers across platforms. Liz Brixius and Linda Wallem write and executive produce the series along with Richie Jackson and Caryn Mandabach, who also serve as executive producers.

THE BIG C debuted as the network’s highest-rated freshman series premiere ever, and season two averaged 2.6 million weekly viewers across platforms. In the season two finale, we left Cathy doubled over in grief at seeing the ghost of her husband Paul (Oliver Platt), as her brother Sean (John Benjamin Hickey) and son Adam (Gabriel Basso) look on, unaware of what could be causing her so much pain. When season three returns, we’ll discover how Cathy and her family are coping with the repercussions, if Sean has moved back indoors, and if Andrea (Gabourey Sidibe) has taken out a hit out on her ex-fiancé for jilting her at the altar. The series is created and written by Darlene Hunt, who serves as executive producer, along with showrunner Jenny Bicks, Laura Linney, Neal H. Moritz and Vivian Cannon. It is produced by Sony Pictures Television.

Season two of THE BORGIAS finds Pope Alexander seeking to consolidate his power and enlisting his family to take an oath of revenge on the great noble houses that dared to stand against him, causing his Papacy to face political turmoil once again. But Alexander’s real problems lie with his children, all of whom are growing up and defying his authority. Lucrezia forges an unlikely alliance between Vanozza and Giulia, and together they plot to battle Vatican corruption. The sibling rivalry between Cesare and Juan will soon turn to hatred as their father’s unwavering favoritism toward Juan triggers Cesare to engage his dark side. Elsewhere in Rome, Alexander’s old enemy Della Rovere has entered the city incognito and conspires to assassinate him. In its freshman season, THE BORGIAS averaged 3.2 million weekly viewers, besting THE TUDORS’ highest rated season by 17 percent. The series is an Ireland/Canada/Hungary co-production. Academy Award(R)-winning director and Emmy nominee Neil Jordan (“The Crying Game”) serves as creator, executive producer and writer of the series. David Leland and Guy Burt also serve as writers during the series’ second run. James Flynn, Sheila Hockin, John Weber, David Leland, Justin Falvey and Jack Rapke serve as the executive producers.

Premiere Schedule is as follows:
Sunday, April 8th
NURSE JACKIE (9 PM ET/PT)
THE BIG C (9:30 PM ET/PT)
THE BORGIAS (10 PM ET/PT)

What do you think? Are you looking forward to any or all of these shows’ returning? Which one are you looking forward to the most?

Image courtesy Showtime.