HBO CANADA PRESENTS BOARDWALK EMPIRE, THE BUZZ-HEAVY PROHIBITION-ERA DRAMA
FROM TERENCE WINTER AND MARTIN SCORSESE

    
    -   "If I were a betting man, I'd put everything I had on Boardwalk
        Empire ... In terms of audience-addicting, inevitably
        Emmy(R)-showered, feature-quality television, this is as close as it
        gets to a sure thing." - Toronto Star

    -   "Boardwalk Empire shows why cable's king." - Globe and Mail
    

TORONTO, Aug. 19 /CNW/ - This fall, HBO Canada, a multiplex channel of Astral's The Movie Network (Eastern Canada) and Corus Entertainment's Movie Central (Western Canada), takes subscribers inside the world of Boardwalk Empire and 1920s America, a time when Wall Street is about to boom, The Great War is finally over, Prohibition makes illegal rum-running big business, and "Nucky" Thompson rules Atlantic City. From Terence Winter, Emmy(R) Award-winning writer of The Sopranos and Academy Award(R)-winning director Martin Scorsese, the series debuts Sunday, September 19 at 9 p.m. ET/MT, day and date with HBO in the US.

Set in Atlantic City, New Jersey, at the dawn of Prohibition, Boardwalk Empire centres around Enoch "Nucky" Thompson (Steve Buscemi), the town treasurer, political fixer and backroom dealer. Equal parts politician and gangster, Nucky's business partners included the likes of Arnold Rothstein (Michael Stuhlbarg), "Big Jim" Colosimo (Frank Crudele), "Lucky" Luciano (Vincent Piazza) and Al Capone (Stephen Graham). Using the town's strategic location on the Eastern seaboard between Philadelphia, Chicago and New York City to his full advantage, Nucky carved out a niche for himself as the man to see for any illegal alcohol, along with his brother Elias (Shea Whigham) the town's sheriff, and a crew of ward bosses and local thugs.

As Boardwalk Empire begins, Jimmy Darmody (Michael Pitt), Nucky's driver and former protégé, returns home from The Great War, eager to get ahead and reclaim his rightful place in Nucky's organization. But when Jimmy feels things aren't moving quickly enough, he takes matters into his own hands, forming a deadly alliance with rival gangsters that puts the Feds, led by Agent Nelson Van Alden (Michael Shannon), on his mentor's tail. Complicating matters further is Nucky's burgeoning relationship with Margaret Shroeder (Kelly Macdonald) a woman in an abusive marriage whom he tries to help.

The series also stars Michael Kenneth Williams ("Omar" from HBO's The Wire) as Chalky White, leader of the city's African-American community; Dabney Coleman as Commodore Louis Kaestner, Nucky's mentor; Paz de la Huerta as Nucky's girlfriend Lucy; Aleksa Palladino as Angela, Jimmy Darmody's Bohemian girlfriend and mother of their three-year-old son; Paul Sparks as Mickey Doyle; Anthony Laciura as Eddie Kesler; and Gretchen Mol as Gillian, a local showgirl with whom Nucky shares a long and complicated history.

The 12-part, one-hour drama is created by Terence Winter and premieres with the Martin Scorsese directed first episode. The series is executive produced by Winter, Scorsese, Tim Van Patten, Stephen Levinson and Mark Wahlberg. Directors include Scorsese, Van Patten, Jeremy Podeswa, Alan Taylor and Allen Coulter.

Boardwalk Empire will be simulcast on HBO Canada HD, and new episodes will be available on demand. Episodes will also be available on The Movie Network OnLine with Bell TV following their network premieres.

HBO Canada is a multiplex channel offered by Astral's The Movie Network (Eastern Canada) and Corus Entertainment's Movie Central (Western Canada). HBO Canada brings Canadians the current slate of signature dramatic programs for which HBO is known, together with new and never-before-seen programming including comedy series, live specials, sporting events, behind-the-scenes content and titles from HBO's extensive library - all in an uncut and commercial-free environment. HBO Canada is offered in high definition on HBO Canada HD and programming is accessible on demand where available by service provider. For more information, please visit www.hbocanada.com.

The Movie Network is a member of the Astral family. Astral is one of Canada's largest media companies. It operates over 100 of the country's most popular pay and specialty television, radio, out-of-home advertising and digital media properties. Astral plays a central role in community life across the country by offering diverse, rich and vibrant programming that meets the tastes and needs of consumers and advertisers. To learn more about Astral, visit astral.com.

Movie Central is owned by Corus Entertainment Inc. (CJR.B/CJR), a Canadian-based media and entertainment company. Corus is a market leader in specialty television and radio with additional assets in pay television, television broadcasting, children's book publishing and children's animation. Experience Corus on the web at www.corusent.com.

For access to The Movie Network's media room or Movie Central's press site, please visit http://tv.astral.com or http://mediacentre.corusent.com.

For further information: Media contacts: The Movie Network (Eastern Canada), Nicolle Balen, [phone], [email protected]; Movie Central (Western Canada), Owen McCorquodale, [phone], [email protected]