‘Homeland’: Season 2 ratings, Emmy win lead to least-surprising renewal ever

Stop us when this news is a shock to you: “Homeland” has just been renewed for a third season. (Our guess is you’re probably not going to be able to stop us at all.)  It’s hard to imagine at this very moment things going any better for this series: it’s still fresh off of a series of huge Emmy wins (including one that broke “Mad Men’s” four-year winning streak), and Sunday night’s mind-boggling episode scored a series-high viewership of 1.75 million. This season has proved to be just as exciting as the first, and that is not an easy thing to do given all of the hype.

In a new statement announcing the season 3 renewal, here is what Showtime president David Nevins had to say:

“The Emmy wins for Homeland have certainly set the stage for a great second season … The writers, cast and crew of continue to create a remarkably entertaining and suspenseful roller coaster ride, growing audiences week after week. We can’t wait for our viewers to experience what unfolds through the rest of season two.”

The only real question surrounding the future of this show at the moment is simple: where do they go from here? It’s hard to see Brody really being able to bounce back from being taken down by the CIA; and even though his family and friends are still in the dark about his terrorist ties, this is not the sort of show where he is just going to be let off easy thanks to some sort of cop-out in the writing. It’s possible that we may see Damian Lewis’ character evolve into a new role as his allegiances to Abu Nazir or tackled from within, or we could see an entirely new villain arise for Claire Danes’ signature character of Carrie. (By the way, we don’t see anyone beating her in the Emmy race next year, either, even if there is still plenty of competition coming up.)