House of Lies is gearing up for its third season return to Showtime, and as we learned in the finale, things have changed. Things are…complicated. And those complications are laid out perfectly in the new teaser trailer and promotional image released by the network on Tuesday. If you loved the tangled web Don Cheadle and Kristen Bell wove into the second season of the fast-paced consultant dramedy, ready yourself for even more high-stakes shenanigans, because the two would-be lovebirds scorned are now rivals. Galweather-Stearn has no idea what’s about to hit them.
The image's tagline "outgunned... but never outdone" feels like a nod to the calamities that have plagued the show's production schedule, with the show's high-stakes attitude weaseling its way into the off-screen antics as well. Recently, the show came under literal gunfire, after filming a scene on location at the Nickerson Gardens housing project in South Central Los Angeles on November 15th. The production (naturally) drew a large crowd, interested in what was surely a big to-do. It just so happened that those onlookers included members of rival gangs. An argument began — apparently over a lack of respect the gang member perceived the production had for the neighborhood — and cast members T.I., Cheadle, and Bell were forced to take cover after shots were fired. (See? They were literally out-gunned! So clever, these management consultants are, so cheeky.) Some media outlets even went as far as to proclaim Cheadle as gravely injured or possibly dead — a claim Bell was quick to dispel on her Twitter account.
Season three jumps off in the aftermath of Marty's decision to launch his own firm — without the help of his trusty go-to pod members, including Clyde (Ben Schwartz) and Doug (Josh Lawson). With the holy quartet disbanded, chaos splits the pod in several fractured directions. But while Marty is “preoccupied with hustling up new clients, his former mentee Jeannie is channeling her inner Kaan and making big moves in his absence,” according to a synopsis from Showtime. And oh, will there ever be guest stars. This season sees the introduction of Eliza Coupe (from the gone-too-soon Happy Endings), Mekhi Phifer, and sees the return of rapper-actor T.I.
House of Lies returns to Showtime on January 12 at 10PM.
