Homeland (season 8)

The eighth and final season of the American spy thriller television drama series Homeland premiered on February 9, 2020, and concluded on April 26, 2020, on Showtime, consisting of 12 episodes.[1][2][3]

Homeland
Season 8
Poster art
Starring
Country of originUnited States
No. of episodes12
Release
Original networkShowtime
Original releaseFebruary 9 (2020-02-09) –
April 26, 2020 (2020-04-26)
Season chronology

Plot

Saul Berenson, the National Security Advisor for newly inaugurated President Ralph Warner, is assigned to negotiate peace with the Taliban in Afghanistan. Carrie Mathison is still struggling to recover from her brutal treatment as a prisoner in Russia, but Saul wants to take her to Afghanistan, feeling her knowledge and experience there are essential.[4]

Cast and characters
Main article: List of Homeland characters

Main
Claire Danes, Mandy Patinkin (left to right) portray lead roles Carrie Mathison and Saul Berenson, respectively.
Maury Sterling, Nimrat Kaur and Numan Acar (left to right) portray Max Piotrowski, Tasneem Qureishi and Haissam Haqqani, respectively.

Recurring
  • Mohammad Bakri as Abdul Qadir G'ulom, the Vice President and, later, President of Afghanistan
  • Tim Guinee as Scott Ryan, chief of special operations at the CIA
  • Andrea Deck as Jenna Bragg, a CIA field agent in Kabul
  • Cliff Chamberlain as Mike Dunne, the CIA station chief in Kabul
  • Charles Brice as Staff Sergeant John Durkin, a U.S. Army soldier serving in Afghanistan
  • Sam Chance as Specialist Drew Soto, serving in Afghanistan
  • Octavio Rodriguez as Specialist Arturo Gonzales, a U.S. Army soldier serving in Afghanistan
  • Victor Almanzar as Staff Sergeant Justin Wenzel, a U.S. Army soldier serving in Afghanistan
  • Jason Tottenham as Alan Yager, a CIA field agent in Kabul
  • Emilio Cuesta as Specialist Charlie Stoudt, a U.S. Army soldier serving in Afghanistan
  • Art Malik as Bunran Latif, a retired Pakistani general
  • Sam Trammell as Benjamin Hayes, the vice president and later President of the United States[6]
  • Elham Ehsas as Jalal Haqqani, Haissam's rebellious son
  • Seear Kohi as Balach, a Taliban loyal to Haissam
  • Eugene Lee as General Mears
  • Terry Serpico as General Owens, a U.S. Army general serving in Afghanistan
  • Tracy Shayne as Janet Gaeto, U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan
  • Mustafa Haidari as Firooz
  • Karen Pittman as Vanessa Kroll, an FBI agent
  • Hugh Dancy as John Zabel, a foreign policy advisor to the President of the United States[4]

Guest

Kamasi Washington makes a special appearance in the series finale.

Episodes
See also: List of Homeland episodes
No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateProd.
code		US viewers
(millions)
851"Deception Indicated"Lesli Linka GlatterDebora Cahn & Alex GansaFebruary 9, 2020 (2020-02-09)8WAH010.60[7]
862"Catch and Release"Lesli Linka GlatterPatrick Harbinson & Chip JohannessenFebruary 16, 2020 (2020-02-16)8WAH020.68[8]
873"False Friends"Keith GordonAlex Gansa & Howard GordonFebruary 23, 2020 (2020-02-23)8WAH030.71[9]
884"Chalk One Up"Seith MannPatrick Harbinson & Chip JohannessenMarch 1, 2020 (2020-03-01)8WAH040.73[10]
895"Chalk Two Down"Alex GravesPatrick Harbinson & Chip JohannessenMarch 8, 2020 (2020-03-08)8WAH050.82[11]
906"Two Minutes"Tucker GatesDebora CahnMarch 15, 2020 (2020-03-15)8WAH060.71[12]
917"Fucker Shot Me"Lesli Linka GlatterPatrick Harbinson & Chip JohannessenMarch 22, 2020 (2020-03-22)8WAH071.09[13]
928"Threnody(s)"Michael KlickPatrick Harbinson & Chip JohannessenMarch 29, 2020 (2020-03-29)8WAH080.75[14]
939"In Full Flight"Dan AttiasAlex Gansa & Howard GordonApril 5, 2020 (2020-04-05)8WAH090.81[15]
9410"Designated Driver"Michael OfferPatrick Harbinson & Chip JohannessenApril 12, 2020 (2020-04-12)8WAH100.89[16]
9511"The English Teacher"Michael CuestaPatrick Harbinson & Chip JohannessenApril 19, 2020 (2020-04-19)8WAH110.96[17]
9612"Prisoners of War"Lesli Linka GlatterAlex Gansa & Howard GordonApril 26, 2020 (2020-04-26)8WAH121.26[18]

Production

The eighth season was ordered back-to-back with season 7 in August 2016.[19] In April 2018, Claire Danes confirmed that season 8 would be the last,[20] and Showtime officially confirmed the final season in August.[2] In April 2018, showrunner Alex Gansa stated his plans for the final season, "Season 8 will be overseas somewhere. We get to play a story with larger national stakes in season 7 and we'll go back to a smaller intelligence-based season in 8." He also stated, "We're going to start fresh in season 8 and probably do a fairly big time jump between 7 and 8 and put any Trump parallels behind us" and "We'll tell a very contained story, hopefully in Israel."[21] In January 2019, it was confirmed that the final season will take place in Afghanistan, with filming beginning in February in Morocco.[22]

The season was originally planned to debut in June 2019, however, it was delayed until late 2019 "because of production demands of our international locations", per Showtime co-president Gary Levine.[23] In August 2019, Showtime delayed the premiere again to February 2020; Levine stated, "Homeland is an ambitious series — especially in its final season. [Showrunner] Alex [Gansa] wants to go out proudly, and that has involved production in multiple countries at times and in places that have some issues. It just takes time." He added, "There have been no missteps. It's been a relatively smooth process. But it's a very ambitious production schedule and it has taken more time than we [anticipated]."[24]

Reception

Early reviews for the eighth season have been generally positive. On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has an approval rating of 85% based on 25 reviews, with an average rating of 7.27/10. The site's critical consensus is, "Homeland returns to form with a tautly thrilling final season that fittingly finishes the job Carrie Mathison started all those years ago."[25] On Metacritic, the season has a score of 71 out of 100 based on 10 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[26]

Robert Rorke of the New York Post wrote, "The first three episodes are a bit clunky, with Carrie's familiar pattern of alienating nearly everyone she meets kicking in again – and then Episode 4 comes along and Homeland finds its groove."[27] Ben Travers of IndieWire gave it a "B+" grade and praised the performances of Claire Danes and Mandy Patinkin, as well as the direction by Lesli Linka Glatter for "for her beautifully staged and tensely cut action sequences".[28]

Ratings
Viewership and ratings per episode of Homeland
No. Title Air dateRating
(18–49)		Viewers
(millions)
1 "Deception Indicated" February 9, 20200.130.60[7]
2 "Catch and Release" February 16, 20200.100.68[8]
3 "False Friends" February 23, 20200.130.71[9]
4 "Chalk One Up" March 1, 20200.130.73[10]
5 "Chalk Two Down" March 8, 20200.130.82[10]
6 "Two Minutes" March 15, 20200.110.71[10]
7 "Fucker Shot Me" March 22, 20200.191.09[10]
8 "Threnody(s)" March 29, 20200.110.75[14]
9 "In Full Flight" April 5, 20200.130.81[15]
10 "Designated Driver" April 12, 20200.120.89[16]
11 "The English Teacher" April 19, 20200.180.96[17]
12 "Prisoners of War" April 26, 20200.241.26[18]

Accolades

For the 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards, Lesli Linka Glatter received a nomination for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for the series finale "Prisoners of War".[29]

References
  1. Hibberd, James (August 6, 2018). "Homeland will end with season 8, Showtime confirms". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on February 16, 2019. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  2. "Showtime(R) Announces Eighth and Final Season of "Homeland" to Premiere in June 2019" (Press release). Showtime. August 6, 2018. Retrieved January 19, 2019 – via The Futon Critic.
  3. Ausiello, Michael (August 2, 2019). "Homeland Final Season Pushed to 2020 — First Plot Details Revealed". TVLine. Archived from the original on August 2, 2019. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  4. Petski, Denise (March 26, 2019). "'Homeland': Hugh Dancy To Recur On Season 8 of Showtime Series". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on March 26, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  5. Andreeva, Nellie (January 14, 2019). "'Homeland' Final Season: Nimrat Kaur & Numan Acar To Reprise Season 4 Roles". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 15, 2019. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  6. O'Connell, Michael (March 8, 2019). "True Blood Alum Boards Final Season of Homeland". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on March 9, 2019. Retrieved March 9, 2019.
  7. Metcalf, Mitch (February 11, 2020). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 2.9.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved February 11, 2020.
  8. Metcalf, Mitch (February 19, 2020). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 2.16.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved February 19, 2020.
  9. Metcalf, Mitch (February 25, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 2.23.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
  10. Metcalf, Mitch (March 3, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.1.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  11. Metcalf, Mitch (March 10, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.8.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  12. Metcalf, Mitch (March 17, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.15.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  13. Metcalf, Mitch (March 24, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.22.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
  14. Metcalf, Mitch (March 31, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.29.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
  15. Metcalf, Mitch (April 7, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.5.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  16. Metcalf, Mitch (April 14, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 412.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  17. Metcalf, Mitch (April 21, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.19.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
  18. Metcalf, Mitch (April 28, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.26.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
  19. Ausiello, Michael (August 11, 2016). "Homeland Officially Renewed for Season 7 and Season 8 at Showtime". TVLine. Archived from the original on July 15, 2018. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  20. Nemetz, Dave (April 18, 2018). "Homeland to End With Season 8, Star Claire Danes Confirms". TVLine. Archived from the original on September 28, 2018. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  21. Hibberd, James (April 19, 2018). "Homeland showrunner reveals 'final season' shakeup plan". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on January 21, 2019. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
  22. Ausiello, Michael (January 7, 2019). "Homeland's End Game: Carrie Returning to [Spoiler] for Final Season". TVLine. Archived from the original on January 7, 2019. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  23. White, Peter (January 31, 2019). "Showtime Moves 'Homeland's Final Season Premiere Back To Fall Due To Global Filming Demands – TCA". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on February 1, 2019. Retrieved January 31, 2019.
  24. Ausiello, Michael (August 2, 2019). "Homeland Season 8 Delay Caused By 'Ambitious' Production Demands Not 'Missteps,' Says Showtime Boss". TVLine. Archived from the original on August 2, 2019. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  25. "Homeland: Season 8". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  26. "Homeland: Season 8". Metacritic. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  27. Rorke, Robert (February 5, 2020). "Final season of 'Homeland' gets off to a rocky start". New York Post. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  28. Travers, Ben (February 4, 2020). "'Homeland' Review: Season 8 Brings the Showtime Drama Full Circle". IndieWire. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
  29. Hipes, Patrick (July 28, 2020). "Emmy Awards Nominations: The Complete List". Deadline. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
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