"Masters of Sex is better than ever.” 

--The Oregonian, Kristi Turnquist

Starring Michael Sheen & Lizzy Caplan as Masters & Johnson

MASTERS OF SEX: SEASON TWO

Available March 30 on Digital HD

Coming to Blu-ray™ & DVD May 5

Bonus Features Include Deleted Scenes & All-New Featurettes including a Blu-ray™ Exclusive Roundtable Discussion with the Men of “Sex”

CULVER CITY, Calif. (March 11, 2015) – Showtime’s hit drama returns when Sony Pictures Home Entertainment releases MASTERS OF SEX: SEASON TWO on Digital HD March 30 and on Blu-ray™ and DVD May 5. The smart and provocative series follows real-life pioneers, Dr. William Masters and Virginia Johnson, as they research the science of human sexuality. In season two, Michael Sheen (Midnight in Paris) returns as the brilliant and renowned fertility specialist (Dr. William Masters), and Lizzy Caplan (Mean Girls) plays his invaluable assistant and lover (Virginia Johnson). One of the most compelling, real-life event dramas on television, MASTERS OF SEX: SEASON TWO finds Masters and Johnson in a continual struggle to get their work back on track, while their personal relationship becomes much more intimate and complex.

Based on the book by Thomas Maier, the second season features an extraordinary cast, including Caitlin FitzGerald (It’s Complicated), Teddy Sears (“American Horror Story”), Annaleigh Ashford (Top Five), and Nicholas D'Agosto (Final Destination 5). Season two also brings back series’ fan favorites, including Beau Bridges (The Descendants), Julianne Nicholson (August: Osage County) and Allison Janney (“Mom”), along with new characters played by Keke Palmer (Akeelah and the Bee), Greg Grunberg (“Heroes”) and Betsy Brandt (“Breaking Bad”).

All 12 episodes of MASTERS OF SEX: SEASON TWO will be available on the Blu-ray™ and DVD sets, along with the compelling “Making History” featurette that explores the time period shift from the ‘50s to the ‘60s, along with the social issues introduced. The Blu-ray™ will also contain deleted scenes and two exclusive, never-before-seen pieces: a fascinating roundtable with the men, as well as a featurette that portrays the strong and complex female characters.

MASTERS OF SEX was developed for television by Michelle Ashford (The Pacific) who also serves as an executive producer. In addition, the series is executive produced by Carl Beverly, Sarah Timberman, Judith Verno and Amy Lippman. Michael Apted, Michael Sheen, Tammy Rosen and Thomas Maier serve as producers. MASTERS OF SEX is produced by Sony Pictures Television.

Synopsis

Having been dismissed by Maternity Hospital, Dr. William Masters (Michael Sheen) needs a place where he and Virginia Johnson (Lizzy Caplan) can resume their work. But thanks to their study’s controversial topic – sex – they are forced out of two more hospitals before deciding to open their own clinic. With the seeds of the sexual revolution being sown and the simmering civil rights movement exploding around them, the intimate relationship they started under the guise of their research unravels as the result of Masters’ sudden impotence. With the prospect of treating sexual dysfunction becoming increasingly important to their patients and themselves, at home Masters confronts his wife’s growing disaffection and the unexpected return of his estranged brother, while Johnson faces a crisis of her own when the publicity surrounding their work places the custody of her two children in doubt.

DVD Special Features:

·         “Making History” Featurette – An exploration of the time period shift from the ‘50s to the ‘60s, including the introduction of Alcoholics Anonymous, diet pills and the start of the Civil Rights movement.

Blu-ray™ Exclusive Special Features:

·         Deleted Scenes

·         “The Men of Sex:  Actors’ Roundtable” – A cast roundtable featuring the men on what it means to be a “man” on this show, including Michael Sheen, Teddy Sears, Beau Bridges, Jocko Sims & Kevin Christy.

·         “The Women of Sex” – A featurette exploring the show’s powerful team of women, both behind the scenes and in front of the camera. 

MASTERS OF SEX: SEASON TWO episodes include:

Parallax

Kyrie Eleison

Fight

Dirty Jobs

Giants

Blackbird

Asterion

Mirror, Mirror

Story of My Life

Below the Belt

One for the Money, Two for the Show

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised

Broadcast Year: 2014.  MASTERS OF SEX: SEASON TWO is rated TV-MA, for ADULT CONTENT, GRAPHIC LANGUAGE & NUDITY.

SONY PICTURES HOME ENTERTAINMENT

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (SPHE) is a Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) company.  Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE's global operations encompass motion picture production, acquisition and distribution; television production, acquisition and distribution; television networks; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; and development of new entertainment products, services and technologies. For additional information, go to http://www.sonypictures.com/.

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LOS ANGELES, CA (August 20, 2014) – Hot off the continued critical and audience acclaim for the second seasons of RAY DONOVAN and MASTERS OF SEX, SHOWTIME is green lighting third seasons for both of its hit drama series.  The announcement was made today by David Nevins, President, Showtime Networks Inc.  Both series will receive 12 one-hour episode orders, and will begin production in early 2015.

“Both RAY DONOVAN and MASTERS OF SEX are quintessentially SHOWTIME: bold, provocative, premium television with production values at the top of the food chain,” says Nevins. “These acclaimed shows are filled with complex and interesting characters and settings that will no doubt give audiences compelling television to invest in for seasons to come.”

MASTERS OF SEX scored five Emmy® Award nominations this year, including nods for actors Lizzy Caplan, Beau Bridges and Allison Janney, who was honored this past weekend with an Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Margaret Scully. RAY DONOVAN’s Jon Voight is also an Emmy contender, receiving his first ever series nomination for his role as Mickey Donovan. Both series continue to resonate with the network’s subscribers, delivering season high numbers for their past few episodes. MASTERS OF SEX’s fifth episode delivered the series’ highest ratings of the season, up 18 percent versus the season two premiere. The series currently averages nearly four million viewers across platforms per week. Similarly, RAY DONOVAN’s fifth episode was up 16 percent versus its season two premiere, and season-to-date is averaging five million weekly viewers across platforms.

Set in the sprawling mecca of the rich and famous, RAY DONOVAN stars Golden Globe® and Emmy nominee Liev Schreiber as L.A.’s best professional fixer, the man called in to make the city’s celebrities, superstar athletes, and business moguls’ most complicated and combustible situations go away. As the season unfolds, Ray continues to seek balance between the demands of his family, including his volatile relationship with Mickey (Golden Globe winner and Emmy nominee Jon Voight), and the demands of his Hollywood clients.  The cast also includes Paula Malcomson, Eddie Marsan, Dash Mihok, Steven Bauer, Katherine Moennig, Pooch Hall, Kerris Dorsey and Devon Bagby. Oscar®-nominated actor Elliott Gould guest stars. The impressive line-up of guest stars for season two also includes Hank Azaria, Ann-Margret, Wendell Pierce, Sherilyn Fenn, Vinessa Shaw, Brian Geraghty, Heather McComb and Kip Pardue. RAY DONOVAN is created and executive produced by Ann Biderman.  A SHOWTIME production, the series is also executive produced by Mark Gordon, Bryan Zuriff and David Hollander.  For a sneak peek at Sunday’s episode, go to: http://s.sho.com/1pFvuJm.

Starring Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Michael Sheen and Emmy nominee Lizzy Caplan as real-life pioneers of human sexuality, William Masters and Virginia Johnson, MASTERS OF SEX chronicles their unusual lives, romance and pop-culture trajectory. Their research touched off the sexual revolution and took them from a mid-western teaching hospital in St. Louis to the cover of Time magazine. The series is an adaptation of Thomas Maier's book Masters of Sex: The Life and Times of William Masters and Virginia Johnson, The Couple Who Taught America How To Love.  Season two also stars Caitlin FitzGerald, Teddy Sears and Annaleigh Ashford. Beau Bridges, Allison Janney, Julianne Nicholson, Betsy Brandt, Sarah Silverman, Keke Palmer, Courtney B. Vance, Rene Auberjonois, Jocko Sims, Greg Grunberg, Barry Watson and Christian Borle guest star. MASTERS OF SEX was developed for television by Michelle Ashford (The Pacific) who also serves as an executive producer. In addition, the series is executive produced by Carl Beverly, Sarah Timberman, Judith Verno and Amy Lippman.  Michael Apted, Michael Sheen, Tammy Rosen and Thomas Maier serve as producers.  MASTERS OF SEX is produced by Sony Pictures Television. For an early look at Sunday night’s new episode, go to:http://s.sho.com/MOSS2E7.

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Dr. William Masters (Michael Sheen) and Virginia Johnson (Lizzy Caplan)

Season 1, Episode 3 - Full Synopsis

The episode begins with a flashback of Dr. William Masters demonstrating the spontaneous ovulation of female rabbits to his colleague and boss, Scully. He goes on to state a desire to study human sexuality to better understand sex, which he claims to have no understanding of. Scully is skeptical of this interest, claiming it to be in poor taste.

In present day, 1957, Masters meets with a virgin patient about to be married. She seeks birth control, and Masters demonstrates how to put on a condom, and she is visibly nervous about the notion of doing so. He suggests creams, jellies, and finally, a diaphragm. She selects the diaphragm, due to its being safe, effective, and discrete. When he explains that the size of the device is selected to match the cervix, she states her ignorance as to where that is located.

Virginia Johnson goes over the schedule for that evening with Masters for research on the physiology of orgasms set to be done with prostitutes from Betty DiMello's brothel. Betty continues to protest to Masters at her wanting her tubes to be untied so that she may have a baby with a wealthy man that is interested in her. He is dismissive of her requests due to her being a lesbian prostitute and child-rearing being a massive responsibility.

That evening, Masters and Virginia conduct preliminary questionnaire interviews on the prostitutes set to be the subjects of the research. The women are then hooked up to the machines and provided with "Ulysses," a vibrator with a camera, to be used if they wish. Each of the shown women have different  results. One appears to be highly successful with Ulysses (before the machine reveals that she faked it), one reveals she has not been able to come for several years now, and another insists on getting on all fours and being spanked by Masters in order to be able to come.

Dr. Lillian DePaul is introduced to Virginia by Masters. Master's wife, Libby, continues to undergo fertility treatments, and be ignorant of the fact that Masters' low sperm count is the reason for their being unable to conceive. Dr. Ethan Haas successfully coaxes Scully into allowing him to run a high-risk fertility case on quadruplets, under the condition that Masters be second-in-command.

Virginia enquires why Dr. DePaul left Cornell, and learns that it was overrun by men. While attempting to be accommodating to Dr. DePaul, she is instead asked to get her some coffee. At the brothel, Virginia states to Masters that she has re-worded some of the questions to accommodate the difference in lifestyle of the subjects, compared to who the tests were originally designed for. This proves to be effective, as the first interview reveals how her attitudes on sex were shaped by the sexual abuse she received from her uncle, as a young girl. In private, Masters and Virginia note that not a single subject is without some sort of sexually transmitted disease. Masters is irked by the lack of diversity in subjects, stating a desire to have more male subjects.

As Masters is performing the tubal ligation reversal on Betty, two of the male surgical interns present  make some distasteful comments regarding Betts being a prostitute, and he orders them to scrub out. He is unable to successfully complete the procedure and awkwardly meets her fiancee in the waiting room, who believes that she is having a procedure on her appendix. Later, he privately reveals to Betty that she has chronic salpingitis, an inflammation of the fallopian tubes caused by pelvic infection, and the extensive tissue damage has left her unable to get pregnant. Masters is angered by this apparent waste of hospital resources, but Virginia reassures him that he has held up his end of his bargain.

At the brothel, Masters and Virginia have male subjects for their research. One of the subjects enquires as to whether or not their eventual studies of sex will include homosexual intercourse. Masters demonstrates an ignorance as to how two men would be able to engage in intercourse. That subject calls another one of the subjects in to demonstrate. Masters later expresses to Virginia his belief that this apparent deviation from "normal" sexual behaviour will not allow them to gain a standard understanding of sex. Another flashback shows Masters' further inquiries as to how one would go about conducting a study on sex and sexuality, while Scully reiterates that he should not pursue such a salacious study.

Masters learns of Haas' taking on the high-risk quadruplet case, and insists to Scully that he is unqualified to take it on. Scully learns that Haas had not brought Masters on as a second, as agreed upon, and his heading of the case is revoked. Virginia discusses Dr. DePaul with two secretaries, and learns of their disdain for the idea of a female OBGYN, despite her tremendous qualifications. Later, Virginia pays a visit and brings a meal to Libby Masters, and finds her crying. Libby reveals some baby clothes and insists on Virginia taking them to the maternity ward for someone who can actually conceive. As she becomes more distraught at her supposed fertility problems, Virginia reveals that Masters is the one unable to conceive.

One of the gay male prostitutes approaches Masters, and states his desire to further contribute to the study, but Masters refuses, stating that his sexual deviancy is outside the realm of what they are researching. Masters returns home, and attempts to reassure his wife regarding the fertility treatments. The quadruplets have gained national press coverage, and Masters is credited to the press for the success (non-fatality) of the births, while Haas watches enviously.

Virginia meets Betty as she is leaving the hospital. She attempts to assure Betty that her fiancé will be understanding of her infertility. Betty, however, states that she will not divulge that information and that the only way for a woman to get anywhere is to hitch their wagon to a man. She continues, by making the claim that Virginia follows Dr. Masters around and that Masters is in love with her. Virginia denies this and insists she is merely his assistant.

Libby returns to the hospital, where Haas informs that he has successfully gotten her pregnant. Virginia enquires as to the nature of the study and their work relationship, due to Masters treating her like an errand girl during the day and a colleague at night (during the study). Masters scolds her, stating that she lacks the qualifications and training that he has and that she will be treated as an equal when she achieves that same level of achievement. Later, Masters threatens to inform the press that Scully had placed Haas, a fellow, on the quadruplet case if he is not given the proper set-up to conduct his research. Scully is unmoved until Masters cryptically states that he has been informed by the gay prostitute that Scully has paid to watch and/or engage in gay sex. Masters continues to say that he wishes to continue this research for the benefit of those living in the shadows. A flashback reveals Scully's essential role in Masters obtaining his current profession, by threatening to not accept the provost position if Masters was not also offered a position.

Masters returns home to his wife, where she cheerfully greets him, gives him a drink, sits him down, and informs him that it has been a good day. He looks on at her, stunned.

Masters of Sex airs on Sundays on Showtime

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